Ten per cent of workers on London’s Olympic project previously unemployed

One in 10 people currently working on the London 2012 Olympic Games building project was previously unemployed, official figures have revealed.

Statistics published by the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) also showed that out of the current workforce of 2,275 one-fifth live locally in the boroughs of Newham, Hackney, Waltham Forest, Tower Hamlets and Greenwich.

The ODA published the figures as it set out its strategy for employment and skills during the construction of the Olympic Park.

London 2012 Jobs explains out how the ODA will work with public and private sector organisations to help contractors recruit the 9,000-10,000 workers that will be needed at peak times during the run-up to the Games.

Launching the strategy, prime minister Gordon Brown said: “The job figures and the ODA employment and skills strategy published today show that the construction of the site can be the catalyst for lasting social and economic change. With more than 10% of the current Olympic Park workforce previously out of work an excellent start has been made.”

The core elements of the strategy include:

• A new jobs brokerage service that will match candidates living locally and elsewhere in the UK with Olympic Park job opportunities.
• The Olympic Park site will become part of a multi-million pound National Skills Academy for Construction, funded by ConstructionSkills, the Learning and Skills Council and the London Development Agency.
• A target of 2,000 trainees, apprenticeships and work placements working on the Olympic Park and other London 2012 venues, including a programme aimed specifically at placing women into construction jobs.