Monday 4 July 2022

London leaders look to upskill construction workers for net zero

A three-year initiative has been launched to upskill construction and built environment workers in London to deal with the demands of net zero on the industry.

Set up by the City of London Corporation, the taskforce is set to meet for the first time today to gauge how much work needs to be done to help those tasked with the challenge of turning the capital’s buildings into the green structures the UK needs for net zero.

It claims upskilling became imperative after its poll with industry professionals revealed that 91% believe the sector’s workforce are not ready to enact the changes needed to achieve the government’s targets.

Policy Chairman at the City Corporation, Chris Hayward, said: “In the capital, construction and maintenance of our existing buildings accounts accounting for around 40% of our carbon footprint.

“The skills gap and labour shortage are threats to our net zero ambitions. [This taskforce] will seek to address this urgent challenge.

“We must place the environment at the heart of our labour market and our labour market at the heart of our environment.”