In a recent human resource case, Balfour Beatty paid £137,000 to a whistleblower that said he was bullied out of his job.

Nigel McArthur was a pre-construction manager for Balfour Beatty in Exmouth.  McArthur claimed that managers at the company hounded him after he expressed concerns over the true cost of an £18.5m building project in Cardiff.

The Welsh Government awarded Balfour Beatty a contract to construct a building in Callaghan Square.  After construction began it was halted before the structure was finished.  Balfour Beatty was paid for the work that was completed, which was approximately £600,000 worth.     

According to McArthur, Balfour Beatty overcharged the Welsh Government for the construction work by hiding the true costs of the construction.  He found that the true sub-contractor costs were hidden in order to increase profit margins from the agreed 3.3% to 7.34%.

When McArthur initially shared his findings with his line manager he was told, “he should not have investigated the costs or alternatively that he should not be concerned about it”.  After the conversation, McArthur claimed his fellow employees bullied him until he finally left the company in February 2015.

Terry Falcao, of Stephens and Scown, said that McArthur’s claim was originally met with denial by the construction firm.  This stayed true until November 2015, just two weeks before the employment tribunal hearing was due.  It was at this time that Balfour Beatty admitted liability for not supporting its employee, but did not admit to carrying out any kind of criminal activity or breaching legal obligations.  Additionally, the company did apologise for failing to treat McArthur with proper care when he raised concerns. 

Balfour Beatty ended up paying McArthur £137,000 after admitting to their “wrongdoing”.  There is no word on whether the Welsh government intends to finish the construction and if they will allow Balfour Beatty to do so.