Gilmac Construction Services denies that workers protesting about pay set fire to a site in Reading

Contractor Gilmac Construction Services has denied reports that workers protesting about payment problems started a fire on one of its sites in Reading yesterday.

Construction union UCATT has been investigating reports that workers started a fire on the Southern Housing Group site, in Basingstoke Road. The reports followed complaints from workers that Gilmac had not paid the subcontractor, understood to be Pyramid Brickwork, for nine weeks.

A Gilmac spokesperson said yesterday that no fire had been started on the site. However, he acknowledged that there had been “some payment issues” on the project.