Eight major building engineering services contractors have begun an employee consultation on the introduction of the HVCA's unified national agreement for mechanical, electrical and plumbing operatives.
The proposed Building Engineering Services National Agreement (BESNA) was been developed by the HVCA in partnership with Balfour Beatty Engineering Services, T Clarke, Crown House Technologies, Gratte Brothers, MJN Colston, N G Bailey, Shepherd Engineering Services and SPIE Matthew Hall.

The agreement seeks to provide equal pay and terms and conditions of employment to operatives across all three disciplines, along with a revised grading structure that will create increased opportunities for employee training and advancement and workforce flexibility.

The BESNA aims to set out clear commitments that will help ensure that rates of pay will be standardised across the workforce, that operatives will continue to be directly employed, that there are no planned redundancies as a direct result of the introduction of the agreement, that many operatives will benefit from improvements in their existing terms and conditions of employment and that all pensions and welfare benefits will be maintained.

The agreement also contains fundamental commitments on health and safety, on apprentice and operative training, and on creating opportunities for skills transfer and development.

HVCA chief executive Blane Judd said that the framework aims to be 'fully in line with the current and future needs of the construction industry and its clients.'

Mr Judd said: 'There have been changes in aspects as diverse as working practices, technology and materials prices over the past few years, all of which the building engineering services sector has succeeded in taking on board. The BESNA provides an integrated approach to the employment of operatives in the sector, and offers significant benefits not only for employers and employees, but also - crucially - for the client.'

Mr Judd added that the development of the BESNA served to underline the commitment of HVCA and its members to the direct employment of the workforce, and that the Association would be re-positioning itself to ensure that it remained relevant to all of its members.

And he confirmed that all of the operatives currently employed by the eight companies would be transferred to the new framework 'without any downgrading or erosion of their terms and conditions'.

Unite, Britain's biggest union, formed from the merger of T&G and Amicus, chose not to participate in negotiations to date, however Mr Judd said that there has been ongoing dialogue with the union, and hope that it would eventually participate in the process.

He added: 'HVCA believes that Unite's active participation would be beneficial in securing and implementing a lasting and workable arrangement.'

Formal consultation between the eight major contractors, Unite and the workforce will now commence, which includes the circulation of a copy of the draft BESNA to every operative, and to appropriate Unite representatives.

The HVCA hopes to have the agreement in place by March next year.