- Jun 28, 2007
- 14,781
- 3
- 4,440
- 65,798
- If you're a qualified, trainee, or retired electrician - Which country is it that your work will be / is / was aimed at?
- United Kingdom
- What type of forum member are you?
- Other
- If other, please explain
- Not an electrician at all.
- Business Name
- Ekthetikos
Saw this posted somewhere. Any truth in it?
Let’s stop pretending the Joint Industry Board (JIB) is fair or impartial. It isn’t. Anyone who’s worked on the tools or tried to progress in the trade long enough knows this. The JIB, along with ECS, ECA, Unite the Union, and JTL, has become a closed circle — making rules, changing them to suit themselves, and punishing those who speak up.
It was supposed to protect standards and represent electricians. Instead, it’s become a tool to control, downgrade, blacklist, and push people out of work.
What’s Really Happening
The ECS card system — controlled by the JIB — is used to block experienced and qualified electricians from jobs.
People who’ve been in the trade for decades are suddenly told they don’t meet some new grading criteria — even though nothing has changed but the goalposts.
Electricians who question the system, report wrongdoing, or stand up for fairness have had their credentials downgraded or revoked, with no proper appeal process.
This is not regulation. This is punishment.
Real Damage, Real Lives
These decisions don’t just stop someone from getting on a job. They ruin lives.
Good tradesmen have been pushed into drink, drugs, depression and homelessness.
Families have gone without. Bills unpaid. Skills wasted.
The mental toll this system has taken is real, but no one at the top ever has to answer for it.
This isn’t just about cards and grades. This is about putting food on the table, keeping a roof over your head, and being treated with basic human respect.
The JIB has helped take all of that away from people who did nothing wrong except speak out or not fit their mould.
Lies and Cover-Ups
People who’ve stood up for children’s rights, raised safety concerns, or exposed misconduct have been deliberately targeted. Their electrical qualifications questioned, false rumours spread, grading blocked or lowered — all to silence and isolate them.
This isn’t accidental. This is a culture of control. And it’s happening behind closed doors, with no transparency and no consequences for those pulling the strings.
The System Is Broken — And It's Time for Accountability
Here’s what needs to happen — and not one day later:
A full, independent investigation into the actions of the JIB, ECS, and those connected to it.
Everyone who has been unfairly downgraded, blacklisted or pushed out must be compensated — financially and professionally.
The individuals and organisations responsible for these decisions must be held accountable — not hidden behind company names and vague excuses.
The ECS grading system needs to be taken out of the hands of those who’ve abused it, and made fair, independent, and answerable to those who rely on it to work.
Enough Is Enough
This isn’t just about one card scheme. It’s about what happens when a few people are allowed to decide who gets to work, who gets punished, and who gets left behind — without oversight or justice.
To anyone in government reading this: you claim to stand for working people — prove it. Investigate this. Compensate the victims. Expose the truth.
And to every electrician who’s been pushed down, shut out, or told to “just accept it” — know this: you’re not alone, and this fight is real.
Let’s stop pretending the Joint Industry Board (JIB) is fair or impartial. It isn’t. Anyone who’s worked on the tools or tried to progress in the trade long enough knows this. The JIB, along with ECS, ECA, Unite the Union, and JTL, has become a closed circle — making rules, changing them to suit themselves, and punishing those who speak up.
It was supposed to protect standards and represent electricians. Instead, it’s become a tool to control, downgrade, blacklist, and push people out of work.
What’s Really Happening
The ECS card system — controlled by the JIB — is used to block experienced and qualified electricians from jobs.
People who’ve been in the trade for decades are suddenly told they don’t meet some new grading criteria — even though nothing has changed but the goalposts.
Electricians who question the system, report wrongdoing, or stand up for fairness have had their credentials downgraded or revoked, with no proper appeal process.
This is not regulation. This is punishment.
Real Damage, Real Lives
These decisions don’t just stop someone from getting on a job. They ruin lives.
Good tradesmen have been pushed into drink, drugs, depression and homelessness.
Families have gone without. Bills unpaid. Skills wasted.
The mental toll this system has taken is real, but no one at the top ever has to answer for it.
This isn’t just about cards and grades. This is about putting food on the table, keeping a roof over your head, and being treated with basic human respect.
The JIB has helped take all of that away from people who did nothing wrong except speak out or not fit their mould.
Lies and Cover-Ups
People who’ve stood up for children’s rights, raised safety concerns, or exposed misconduct have been deliberately targeted. Their electrical qualifications questioned, false rumours spread, grading blocked or lowered — all to silence and isolate them.
This isn’t accidental. This is a culture of control. And it’s happening behind closed doors, with no transparency and no consequences for those pulling the strings.
The System Is Broken — And It's Time for Accountability
Here’s what needs to happen — and not one day later:
A full, independent investigation into the actions of the JIB, ECS, and those connected to it.
Everyone who has been unfairly downgraded, blacklisted or pushed out must be compensated — financially and professionally.
The individuals and organisations responsible for these decisions must be held accountable — not hidden behind company names and vague excuses.
The ECS grading system needs to be taken out of the hands of those who’ve abused it, and made fair, independent, and answerable to those who rely on it to work.
Enough Is Enough
This isn’t just about one card scheme. It’s about what happens when a few people are allowed to decide who gets to work, who gets punished, and who gets left behind — without oversight or justice.
To anyone in government reading this: you claim to stand for working people — prove it. Investigate this. Compensate the victims. Expose the truth.
And to every electrician who’s been pushed down, shut out, or told to “just accept it” — know this: you’re not alone, and this fight is real.
