RICS is urging Britainís construction industry to provide basic English lessons to its increasing numbers of non-English speaking construction workers.
Around 60 people die every year on building sites in the UK. A better understanding of English would not only reduce site deaths but also boost productivity. A number of construction firms including St George and Carillion have begun piloting this idea in partnership with colleges local to large projects.
There is a ready made industry (Teaching English as a Foreign Language, TEFL) which could provide basic, intermediate or even advanced English lessons for workers. Such an initiative would also dovetail neatly with recent announcements from the Commission for Racial Equality that it wishes to more robustly address the issue of citizenship in multi-cultural Britain.
Whilst the recently published Egan Skills Review (Monday 19 April) seeks to promote better communication and cooperation at the professional end of the 60bn construction industry, at the other end of the scale even basic English cannot be taken as read as an increasing proportion of labourers and craftsmen cannot communicate or read safety signs because they do not speak the language.
The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) estimates that the UK construction industry will require an extra 83,000 workers annually. Many of these will come from outside the UK. When ten new countries join the European Union on 1 May, workers (especially from Eastern Europe) will be further encouraged to seek work on British building sites. Their new status as EU citizens will oil the market for migrant labour on which the UK construction industry relies.
Massive declines in British trade apprenticeships (where young people gain real, hands on experience), have left the UK unable to service the demand for skilled labour from its own population.
The long term solution is a daunting task. Restructuring the education system to channel young people into skilled trades will also need a revolution in the ëmuddy bootsí image of the industry. The immediate and mid term solutions, however, will be dictated by diamond hard market economics. The demand for labour will continue to be filled from outside the UK.
Migrant craftsmen tend to be well trained and increase the pool of available labour. One recent London project was polished off by a gang of 35 tradesmen from Prague.
RICS construction spokesman, Launce Morgan, said:
ëWhatever the arguments about the decline of skills in the UK, the influx of foreign labour is likely to continue. It is an accepted and necessary part of the industry. If any dent is to be made in the seemingly insatiable demand for housing in Britain, for example, even more construction work than is currently forecast will need to be done.
ëThe single most helpful thing to a migrant worker would be to help them learn the language of the country in which they are living and working. It so happens that this is one of the canniest business moves too. A fluent workforce would be a safer and more productive one.í
ëWe believe foreign firms would also buy into the programme, as it may help them stay in the market.í
Joe Martin of RICS Building Cost Information Service, said:
ëWorkmen from abroad are often highly skilled and represent value for money, and many projects could not be completed without them. But there are reports of mistakes being made due to language barriers. Very often a group or gang of men from a particular country will have a ëleaderí who alone speaks English.í
Teach them a lesson!
On-site English lessons will mean a safer and more productive construction industry.