Tower crane strikes expose ‘perfect storm’ created by government policy: CPA

The dispute is being driven by falling workloads and higher employment costs, which have stripped employers of the capacity to meet further pay demands

Strike action by tower crane operators highlights the growing strain across the construction sector, with the Construction Plant-hire Association (CPA) warning that government policy failures have created a perfect storm of weak demand, rising costs, and escalating industrial disputes.

The CPA, which represents some of the UK’s largest tower crane rental firms, said the dispute is driven by falling workloads and higher employment costs, which have stripped employers of the capacity to meet further pay demands.

New data from construction analysts Glenigan underscores the scale of the slowdown, with the total value of projects starting on site falling by around 20% in 2025, while civil engineering activity dropped 56% year-on-year.

Main contract awards fell 11%, while planning approvals are at record lows, leaving a fragile and uncertain 2026 pipeline.

That collapse in activity has directly led to poor utilisation across plant fleets. Employers faced prolonged periods of low demand throughout 2025 as projects delayed from 2024 and 2025 failed to materialise, exacerbated by regulatory uncertainty and the mishandling of Gateway 2.

At the same time, firms have absorbed sharp increases in employer National Insurance and the minimum wage, pushing up baseline employment costs just as revenues have been falling.

Subdued demand has also allowed clients to force down hire rates amid oversupply, further squeezing margins.

In the current dispute, crane rental firm Wolffkran said average crane utilisation has fallen by 26% since 2016, the number of cranes on hire has dropped by around 40%, and average rental rates have declined by 20-25%. This leaves little headroom for further cost increases.

The CPA warned that unless confidence is restored and investment unlocked, industrial relations across construction will continue to deteriorate, undermining the supply chain needed to deliver homes, infrastructure, and economic growth.