Court payout for workers over redundancies

Engineers awarded £400,000 by tribunal after collapse of Teeside oil rigs contract

Workers on an engineering project to fit out two semi-submersible oil drilling rigs on Teesside have been awarded £400,000 by a tribunal following the collapse of the contract.

The workers, who were employed by Darlington-based engineering firm Cleveland Bridge, lost their jobs last year when the project, run by a firm called Sea Dragon, collapsed.

Cleveland Bridge was the main contractor for the fabrication and erection of the topside of the drilling rigs and hired 140 staff to work on the venture.

An employment tribunal ruled last week that Cleveland Bridge should have done more to consult workers on the redundancies and should have started that consultation earlier. It awarded 110 staff represented by the GMB union 45 days’ pay each.

The GMB said: “This judgment should serve as a reminder to employers that GMB will take whatever steps necessary to protect our members’ employment rights.”

The dispute centred on the length of time it took Cleveland Bridge to inform the affected workers after it had decided on redundancies. The GMB alleged that the company failed to consult workers and the union in good time, and that the consultation that did take place was “limited” and “insufficient”.