Building jobs back as cement arrives: Raghwan

July 30, 2009 01:27:13 PM

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Seventy percent of Fiji construction industry workers who had to be sent off work because of a recent shortage of cement should have their jobs back when supplies return to normal within a week, says Fiji Master Builders Association president Vijay Raghwan.

Raghwan says he expects the workers to be rehired.

He told FijiLive that builders had been informed by supplier Basic Industries that a shipment of clinker (raw material) arrived last week.

“We have started receiving bits and drags (of cement) from Monday,” he said.

Some 200 workers with Raghwan Construction were deployed to other areas within the company due to the shortage.

“This is the first time to my knowledge this has happened,” Raghwan said.

“I hope they (Basic Industries) will be prudent next time.”

He would not comment on how much the cement shortage had cost the industry.

“But we also should give credit to the industry for not giving or supplying to us the inferior clinker,” Raghwan added.

Basic Industries said earlier the shortage arose because it did not want to use inferior quality clinker from the previous shipment a month ago.