MORE than 60 contract workers who were working on the construction of a North-East power plant have been made redundant, The Northern Echo understands. 

Balfour Beatty, which employed workers to help build MGT Tees REP power station at Teesport, has since come under fire from politicians who argue workers should have been furloughed.

Middlesbrough Mayor Andy Preston has since said it would have costed "nothing" for the "cash-rich" company to take advantage of the government's scheme.

Companies have been urged to furlough their employees rather than 'lay them off' in a bid to retain jobs, and prevent employees relying on Universal Credit - which pays much less.

Under the furlough scheme, those who are laid off still receive 80 percent (up to £2,500) in wages every month for at least three months, during the coronavirus pandemic.

However, Mr Preston said his efforts to communicate with the firm had been ignored as he slammed the firm's redundancies.

He said: “Balfour Beatty have made Teessiders redundant at exactly the worst time.

“I’m not telling them how to run their business but it seems to me and the workers that they could have been furloughed.

The Northern Echo: An artists impression of the MGT Teesside plantAn artists impression of the MGT Teesside plant

“This would cost nothing for this huge, cash-rich company and give the workers some peace of mind at this stressful time.

“I’m keen to support the workers so I emailed the company on Tuesday - asking why I’m getting reports of redundancies when furloughing is an option. I got no reply.

“I phoned the company yesterday (Wednesday) - asking for them to confirm they were making redundancies and explain why this is necessary. They promised to come back to me but didn’t.

“Balfour Beatty’s lack of communication is appalling and they seem to be showing no interest in the people who’ve worked hard for them - taking their labour and commitment and kicking them into touch without any care.

“Until Balfour Beatty can confirm that they will furlough the workers, I urge everyone to protest about this and message your frustration to the company on social media.”

Meanwhile the Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen said "none" of Balfour Beatty's workers needed to be made redundant and criticised their actions.

He said: “I have been speaking with bosses at Balfour since hearing about possible redundancies and have sought to get urgent clarity on the situation.

"The company tells me these job losses are due to the completion of a project and not related to the coronavirus pandemic, however that does not mean these workers cannot be furloughed and given the crucial financial support they need for themselves and their families.

“In Teesside we look after our own. Businesses should be making protecting their workers their absolute priority during this crisis.  The Government's support package is about keeping people in jobs and helping businesses stay in business. ​

“No one needs to let workers go because of the coronavirus, Government cash is available to help firms to continue to pay wages, and businesses should be doing everything they can in this time of national emergency to help staff get all the financial support they are entitled to.​

“I will continue to press this case with Balfour and do everything I can to support workers across Teesside, Darlington and Hartlepool during this difficult time.”

In response, a spokesperson for Balfour Beatty said it had been unable to secure "suitable" opportunities for the workers at the MGT Teesside plant as the project reached "completion".

They said: "We can confirm that on February 28, we commenced formal consultation with a number of Balfour Beatty Kilpatrick employees based on our MGT Power Station project in Teesside as the project reaches completion this year.

“As this formal consultation process is already under way, those employees who were already under consultation due to reasons unrelated to the covid-19 pandemic are not eligible for the government’s COVID-19 Job Retention Scheme.

“Wherever possible, we actively seek redeployment opportunities for all of our workforce. Unfortunately, on this occasion, we have been unable to secure suitable alternative opportunities.”