FERGUSON Marine of Port Glasgow today responded to claims that they are hiring foreign workers instead of local people.

The Telegraph has received a string of phone calls from 
local people alleging they have been overlooked for jobs at the expanding shipyard.

We put their comments to managing director Liam Campbell, who said there was a lack of skills and experience among some local people applying for jobs.

He said: “Ferguson Marine now employs in excess of 200 people, and we are proud to say that over 96 per cent of that workforce lives within the 
Inverclyde and Renfrewshire area.

“As an important part of our commitment to re-energising the shipbuilding industry in our country and local community, we intend to take on 150 apprentices over the next five years.

“With the aim of a 400-strong workforce by the end of 2016, we always hope to recruit people living in Scotland and the UK, which makes sense both logistically for them and for us, to retain the necessary skills locally.

“With that objective, we have been actively recruiting for the last 17 months across all of the trades in the yard, advertising locally through the Jobcentre network and nationally in Scotland.”

Mr Campbell said that, given the previous collapse of commercial shipbuilding on the Clyde, it is no surprise that the majority of those with the 
necessary skills have moved away or on to other careers.

He said: “Nationally, there is an industry skills shortage and, as a consequence, we find that we have exhausted the local supply in certain trades that meet our criteria for employment.

“As an example, we are currently hiring platers – but out of 50 interviewed so far, only five had the level of skills and qualifications required to join the workforce. All five were hired.”

Mr Campbell says the company can survive only if they can ensure they deliver vessels on time.

He added: “This means that we must have the skilled and experienced workforce capable of delivering. 

“If that is not possible, we have no alternative but to employ either companies or agencies to boost production in order to meet those deadlines.

“There is no financial incentive for Ferguson Marine to hire an agency, but they offer the flexibility of providing staff who can tackle specific tasks immediately and for short periods. This leaves the door open for permanent recruitment when the right candidates become available.” 

Mr Campbell added: “Contractually, we hire the agency and not the staff directly. In many instances, these agencies employ workers from other countries within the European Union.

“While this is not ideal, there is an upside in that we get the benefit of the ingenuity of nationals from other countries who have been immersed in the shipbuilding innovation for the last 15 years where we have missed out.

“This exposes our workforce and apprentices to modern shipbuilding techniques, and will put us in a more competitive position in the years to come, helping us realise our long term goals for the company.”

Ferguson’s head of human resources, Kelly O’Rourke, said the company’s recruitment campaign will continue until their core workforce stabilises in line with the needs of their order book.

She said: “We will continue to advertise locally and nationally for employees who have the experience and skills we are looking for.

“For any possible candidates who feel they meet our criteria, we encourage them to apply by contacting us at recruitment@fergusonmarine.com where they will be assessed against our HR procedures and job criteria.”

She added: “It’s worth emphasising that this relates not just to job skills but to attitude, commitment, work ethic and the availability to work the extended hours which contribute to timely completion of the work required.”