Road Construction Contractors in Confusion over Coronavirus
Clarity is needed from the government within the road construction industry despite the government cracking down on social distancing.
The BBC calls for clarity over new curb on life following the announcement from Boris Johnson, Prime Minister declaring the country in a state of lockdown other than work! The image captures road construction on site and workers continuing to go to work today.
Many road construction contractors are still expected to go to site despite the country entering lockdown to stop the spread of coronavirus. The government will need to clarify who can go to work following the Prime Minister, banning people from leaving the house other than other than essential reasons, outlawing gathers of more than two people, unless they’re from the same household. He then went on to say people can still leave home to go to work, but to work from home where possible.
The situation has left road construction contractors and construction workers, widespread confusion this morning over whether or not they can go to work, where working from home is not possible.
This comes after House builders such as Taylor Wimpey and Galliard have already announced they are closing their sites, due to the Coronavirus. But other house builders and construction companies remain open and road construction contractors and construction workers in the main are unsure whether road construction contractors and construction workers are to continue work as usual or remain at home and lockdown?
It is suggested that several other firms are expected to follow suit, standing down road construction contractors and building sites across the North East and across the UK, following yesterdays announcement to stay at home.
The cabinet minister Michael Gove today said, builders should still be going to work – if they work in a setting that’s appropriate to stay two metres away from colleagues. That means large- scale construction sites have been told to go ahead – but domestic home extensions should be put on hold.
He told ITV’s Good Morning Britain: “If it is the case you are reconstructing or building a home in which no one present, that is appropriate and it can go on.”
“But if we’re talking about the sort of construction work that involves a builder coming into home in order to deliver an extension or something like that, that would seem not appropriate and not in line with the clear guidance.”
Mr Gove added; there is “some essential construction work that does need to continue” and “construction and some manufacturing work is critical to the life of the nation.”
He said appropriate construction work includes “the development of new sites” but added that “common sense” is to be exercised.
“But everyone who is working who cannot work from home should practice safe social distancing measures.”
The message has left road construction contractors and many other construction workers in a state of confusion.
Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s First Minister said building sites “should be close for the period of the efforts to combat the virus… There are still too many people across our country who have been expected to, or are expecting, to go to work as normal and that presents a serious and unnecessary risk of spreading the virus,”.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan told the BBC “I’ve worked on a construction site. It’s very difficult to keep the two-metre distance.” He told ITV on the views whether construction workers should go to work: “My view is no…. I made that point quite forcefully at yesterday’s COBRA, I made that point quite clearly…”
“According to the governments advice, the answer is ‘yes;.”
