Whilst I really do hate to see the decline in Belfast based shipbuilding in all its forms and the end of the H&W shipbuilding industry, I see and hear many shout the abhorrence of everyone and anyone that contributed to its eventual demise, much of what I have to say I expect will attract scorn, but everything I say is true and factual and has been described and witnessed personally by myself and close friends over many many years.
I am old enough to remember the shipyard when it was still very busy and ships were regularly occupying the dry docks and availing of the vast amount of local skill and talent who were contributing to the yards success. There was of course the flip end of the coin who were day and daily robbing the place blind through scams and schemes that even as a young man, being witness too I found very disturbing. Government were pouring millions into the yard and nothing was changing. Potential work was being redirected away from Belfast and although some travelled across to the Clyde and similar UK destinations, much was lost to countries, states and nations who saw the potential in offering a better service, a much more efficient and less time consuming process and the icing on the cake at cheaper prices. The reason they could do this was because they had a workforce which valued the importance of regular work, more opportunities for their children and their children's children and the wealth from subsequent growth. Not so at H&W! Instead they managed to continue to fail through a huge majority of workers more intent in filling their own pockets at the businesses expense.
Over the years I witnessed:
1. Workers regularly relieving the yard off tools, services and construction materials meant for ships, but finding their way to make railings for their gardens, gates for their driveway and their family's of course and enough paint and brushes, screws, nails, drill bits and anything else that would have made B&Q blush and find difficulty storing.
2. A family friend asking if another friend could get his hands on and old Army sleeping bag. What for I asked? The night shift was his reply, kindly explaining that despite perhaps say thirty welders being paid night rates to weld, it was common practice that only ten really well spaced out across the yard actually welded whilst the other twenty got their heads down. So two nights out of three you were getting paid to sleep. Remind me again why orders were getting late and the yard were getting heavily penalised? Supervisors were not a bit shy themselves of availing of this common practice.
3. The yard had a chroming plant, its initial intention was to provide a chroming service for items that needed to be produced for the ships, not the workers alloy wheels, motorbike parts and whatever else needed done for a few quid into the back pocket. It was running at so much of a loss it closed down and work was sent outside and causing yard job losses.
4. I personally witnessed workers using and availing of the plethora of escape holes throughout the perimeter, rolling up coveralls and hiding them so when they eventually made it back to the yard so that they could "clock out" and get paid for the entire day instead of perhaps the 3-4 hours that they had actually spent working.
5. Social clubs and pubs, mainly around Dee Street and East Belfast of course on the other hand benefited greatly from the grateful and hard working workforce, both during the afternoons and evenings , as well as during the day when many workers were being paid by the yard.
I'm sorry for this rant, but I make no apologies for calling it as it is. The failings of H&W is the failing of successive workforces and their lack of professional commitment and dedication to the yard, themselves and their families.
