星空传媒

3
The total number of designers ever prosecuted under Section 13 of the Construction (Design and Management) regulations since they were introduced back in 1995.

Does this mean designers are a pretty law-abiding bunch? Not likely. In a sweep of Scotland and the north of England in March the Health and Safety Executive found that a third of the 130 designers they interviewed demonstrated little or no understanding of their responsibilities under CDM regulations.

But is ignorance of the law any excuse? While ignorance of the law generally isn't, it didn't ruffle the HSE's feathers too much. The watchdog said the point of the exercise was to raise awareness and promote good practice.

4
The number of top-ten quoted contractors offering final-salary pension schemes to new staff.

"We believe it attracts good people and there's no point in closing it now - all the damage has already been done," Costain finance director Charles McCole told Construction News.

Balfour Beatty, Mowlem and Kier didn't see it that way. They closed their schemes last year. Along with Costain, the other contractors are Amec, Carillion and MJ Gleeson.

The reason many firms have given for shutting down these schemes is the introduction of a new accounting rule, FRS17, which says businesses have to report annual changes in the value of their funds.

And the way the stockmarket has been lately, it hasn't been good news at all.

What it means for you is that it is very unlikely that you will land a job where the amount of pension you get is guaranteed.

20
The percentage of employers using labour-only subcontractors (LOSCs) who provided off-the-job training to staff.

Those who directly employ their staff are more committed to training (37% of them provided it). Also, 54% of companies with more directly employed staff had apprentices, while only 22% of companies relying on LOSCs had apprentices.

Finally, most LOSC workers admitted they got their training while they were directly employed.

These figures come from the CITB, who conducted the survey to justify the three-fold higher levy it applies to employers using LOSCs. The numbers clearly indicated that less gets spent on staff employed on a LOSC basis. It seems the CITB got all the ammunition it needed to continue its policy of taking from the gainers and giving to the trainers.

123
The number of construction managers who died from asbestos-related mesothelioma between 1980 and 2000, according the Health and Safety Executive.

The total number of male mesothelioma cases increased almost threefold over the period from 1980 to 2000, though in most cases proportions of mesothelioma deaths across occupational groups have remained stable over time.

Here are the deaths in the same period by trade: Carpenters 887, Plumbers And Gas Fitters 619, Electricians 496, Construction Workers 486, Painters and Decorators 361, Builders 338, Welders 204, Electrical Engineers 140, Bricklayers And Tile Setters 129, Steel Erectors 62, Plasterers 65, Roofers And Glaziers 56, Crane Drivers 51, Scaffolders 36, Masons and Stonecutters 5

500m
The amount of cash which Education Secretary Charles Clarke has sanctioned head teachers to pilfer from building and repair budgets to pay staff.

Government claims it is going to pump millions into school maintenance projects over the next 15 years, now estimated between 拢45bn and 拢60bn. The difficulty is believing it will ever be able to fund such a programme when it has such problems keeping track of its budget.

Last month Croydon headmaster Jonathan Parker had to close his school for an afternoon because he couldn't afford to pay supply teachers. And that was after he had taken 拢90,000 out of the maintenance pot.

Construction Confederation chief executive Stephen Ratcliffe said Clarke's move signalled the first cracks in the government's pledge to stick to its capital spending programme.