Bulgarian construction workers have reaped applauses as one of the hardest working in Scotland. Photo by Nadya Kotseva (Sofia Photo Agency)
Most construction industry managers think Eastern Europeans work harder than their Scottish counterparts and many believe they are more skilled, according to a new survey, cited by the Herald.
A total of 72% of contractors, developers, architects, civil engineers and surveyors who took part in the survey by Scottish Construction Now magazine said eastern Europeans were harder working than their Scottish counterparts, while 28% said they believed they were more skilled and 66% claimed they were roughly the same.
An overwhelming majority of the 120 people who participated said their experience of eastern European workers had been "very positive", and an even higher percentage said Poles, Slovaks, Czechs and Bulgarians had a much better attitude to work.
More than three quarters of respondents claimed their experience with eastern European workers has been "very positive", while 80% believed they had "a better work attitude than the Scots."
However, a significant minority, just over one third, warned that eastern Europeans required to improve on their health and safety practices.