Strike by Housing Executive staff on Monday comes as public body denies ‘walkout’ by private contractors but admits surging construction cost difficulties

The strike by members of the Unite trade union, who account for a majority of the hundreds of staff employed in the Housing Executive’s ‘Direct Labour Organisation’, takes place against a backdrop of widespread industrial discontent fuelled by soaring prices and increased demands for wage rises to match inflation.

It will be the third period of industrial action by Unite members in the Housing Executive this year, following similar action in the spring that coincided with strikes at other public sector employers including local councils and the Education Authority.

Meanwhile, the Housing Executive has moved to deny claims from the SDLP that 11 of 13 private contractors who also carry out maintenance and other work at their properties had walked away.

SDLP MLA Mark H Durkan had made the claim in a press statement earlier this week, as he expressed concern about older Housing Executive properties being left “in a state of disrepair and in very poor condition” with what he said was a backlog for maintenance work that built up during the coronavirus pandemic.

The union, meanwhile, say any claims of a walkout by contractors had not played a role in the timing of their industrial action.

Unite official Michael Keenan, speaking to the News Letter ahead of Monday’s industrial action, said: “That came as a revelation to ourselves that contractors would take the notion to walk away from the Housing Executive, but as you know that has happened before ... if private contractors don’t seem to be able to make enough money from the Housing Executive, they walk away from it.”

The Housing Executive, however, has insisted contractors remain “under contract” and that claims of a walkout are “factually incorrect”. The organisation did, however, admit to difficulties linked to the surge in costs experienced by the construction industry.

Asked by the News Letter to respond to Mr Durkan’s statement, a spokesperson added: “We have been able to maintain services for our tenants over the last number of years, thanks to the work of our teams and our maintenance contractors.

“We have been in constant dialogue with contractors over what has been a very challenging period and, when required, have been flexible in the approach to the applications of performance indicators and low services damages. The contractors are still in contract at this time.”

The spokesperson continued: “The current economic environment has, however, driven significant cost pressures and supply chain constraints, which has had a major impact on the construction industry. The Housing Executive has recognised this and is currently working with our contractors on any applications for increased contract costs due to inflationary pressures. These are being assessed using evidence and against the terms of the contracts and public contracts regulations.”

Mr Keenan, meanwhile, said: “Our policy has always been that all work should be done in-house anyway, that’s the policy of the union, that we should forget about private contractors.”

He added: “The Housing Executive pays very low wages, which is part of the reason for the strike.

“A lot of our members are on minimum wage and a lot of them are highly skilled people - joiners, plumbers, electricians – and a lot of them are labourers, ground maintenance workers. These are the people who worked during the pandemic. When people were afraid to go out, they had to go into people’s houses.”

Foyle MLA Mark H Durkan, meanwhile, said: “The subsequent exponential rise in the cost of materials and difficulty securing resources undoubtedly placed further pressures on contractors to deliver results.”

Mr Keenan said the strike, which will involve around 300 workers, comes after the employer “failed to bring forward any concrete proposals” to address the union’s concerns.

The strike is set to continue from Monday for four weeks. The Housing Executive said it would “carry out emergency only repairs” during the strike.