Arch workers miss out on opening

Cleveland Bridge engineers have been working on the stadium

The firm behind the spectacular £60m arch at the new Wembley Stadium has not been invited to its opening ceremony.

Darlington-based Cleveland Bridge UK, which built the 133 metre steel arch, has said its workers will not be there.

It follows a dispute in July with Cleveland Bridge and the stadium's main contractor Multiplex which resulted in 95 people losing their jobs.

Their contracts were transferred to firm Hollandia/Fast Track, but lost again in a dispute last week.

A spokeswoman for Cleveland Bridge said it was disappointed the firm had not been invited to the ceremony.

She said the company had worked within the design, engineering and construction teams at the stadium for over two years.

She said: ""There is no doubt that the arch is a brilliant piece of engineering and one of which we are very proud.

"Every member of our team, every family in Teesside and every one of the more than 500-strong construction staff are proud of their achievements and will toast its quietly toast its success."

Last week construction workers staged an unofficial after they were sacked following their transfer firm to another company, Hollandia/Fast Trak.

The stadium's arch, lifted into place earlier this summer, will be lit up for the ceremony which will also be attended by England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson.

The 1,750 tonne arch, which can be seen from all over London, stands more than four times as high as the former stadium 'Twin Towers' and took six weeks to lift into place.