A protest by the building trades which started at Bull Arm earlier this week moved to Confederation Building this morning before ending at the Carpenters Union in Paradise.

Skilled tradespeople are upset with a contract signed by the Carpenters Union with D.F. Barnes to retrofit a drilling rig at Bull Arm.

Spokesperson Waylon Wall says the company and government are trying to keep the building trades out of the picture but the company says that is not so. Wall also wants answers from the Carpenters Union on why they would sign a wall-to-wall contract.

Protesters are concerned that they are losing their union-built site at Bull Arm to a non-union company.

Jason Fudge, the president of D.F. Barnes, says it’s about being competitive on a global scale. About 30 people are working on the drill rig, he says some are unionized.

Some are specialized technicians which would fall outside a union but he says other jobs such as scaffolding are supplied by the building trades.