Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
DEVASTATION
700 Caterpillar staff to be laid off Union in blast over ‘profit grab’
UP to 700 manufacturing workers are in line to lose their jobs in Northern Ireland.
Some roles at Caterpillar in Larne, Co Antrim, could be outsourced to India and unions dubbed it a “scandalous profit grab” at the expense of local staff.
Unite’s George Brash said a number of people had spent 30 years with the generator-building firm.
He added: “They are absolutely devastated that i n the midst of a pandemic what we are looking at is jobs lost in the mouth of Christmas.”
The process is expected to be completed within 18 months and is designed to ensure the competitive future of the multinational.
Consultations with unions begin next week.
The announcement is part of the company’s plans to better utilise existing capacity and improve cost competitiveness.
Managers said the proposal was unrelated to Brexit or Covid-19.
Mr Brash added: “That is families, that is Larne, that is the wider community that is going to take a hit. They are angry that potentially jobs could be outsourced to foreign countries.”
The union’s regional officer said t h e w o rkf o r c e wa s highly skilled and motivated and added it would b e unacceptable if some roles were moved to India.
He hoped there would be opportunities for redeployment or alternative work.
Mr Brash said: “They are on a slippery slope when there are 700 jobs at risk. The fear for the workers is this is the first of other announcements.”
Northern Ireland has lost a host of manufacturing jobs in recent years including the closure of Michelin in Ballymena, Co Antrim, in 2018.
The town’s Wrightbus – the firm which built London’s doubledecker Routemaster buses – was saved from liquidation this time last year with 1,200 jobs hanging in the balance.
MLA John Stewart said Caterpillar’s announcement came out of the blue. He added: “To take 700 workers out of this town will have a huge impact and there are a lot of people really fearful about what the future will bring.”
Caterpillar is a Us-based heavy machinery maker working in areas like mining. Its facility in Springvale, West Belfast, will not be affected by the job cuts. The number of staff in Northern Ireland is around 1,600.
Joe Creed, vice president of Caterpillar’s electric power division, said: “We recognise what we are considering is difficult for our employees, their families and the community.
“We do not take these contemplations lightly, however, we must plan for future business needs to be competitive.”
Mayor Peter Johnston said Mid and East Antrim Council would do all it could to support staff.
He added: “Caterpillar is a major employer. The wider economic benefit it provides is hugely significant, including the supply chain.”
irish@mgn.co.uk
They are angry that potentially jobs may be outsourced GEORGE BRASH YESTERDAY
RISHI Sunak has been forced into yet another U-turn – extending the furlough scheme for five months as the jobs bloodbath from Covid topped 250,000.
Just 12 hours into the latest lockdown in England, the Chancellor said reviving the Government scheme to pay 80% of laid-off workers’ wages would “protect jobs and livelihoods”.
Yet it comes too late to save those made redundant when his original furlough scheme ended on October 31.
Until yesterday the Government had stubbornly refused to extend the programme but the horrific job losses forced it to backtrack. Continuing it until the end of March could cost another £30billion and take the total bill to around £70billion.
Mr Sunak’s Commons aboutturn came as another 4,000 redundancies were announced.
Sainsbury’s said it was axing
3,500 from meat, fish and deli counters as well as a number of high street Argos stores. Meanwhile, construction vehicle giant Caterpillar is set to cut 700 jobs in Northern Ireland and aero engine maker Rolls Royce gave details of nearly 1,400 losses worldwide.
It t means the tally of jobs lost or put at risk by big firms since ce the pandemic has topped pped 250,000.
The figure will be higher gher once small firms ms are included.
Mr Sunak said furloughed loughed workers will l get 80% of their salaries to a maximum £2,500 a month. Bosses will have to pay employer national insurance contributions and continue funding pensions. He also bowed to pressure from Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, saying upfront guaranteed fundin funding for them will rise by £2billion. Business lobby group the th CBI said extending the th scheme would “give firms firm the certainty and stability stabilit to help safeguar safeguard thousands of jobs”.
But Jo h n P hi l li p s , acting boss of the GM GMB union, said that whil while the extension would provide muchneeded certainty for many workers, it had been obvious for some time that additional support was needed.
He added: “The delay has caused a bonfire of jobs and investment and prevented workers and employers from planning for the future.”
TUC general secretary Frances O’grady welcomed the extension but warned there were still gaps in the support package.
She said: “It’s not right to ask millions of low-paid workers on furlough to survive on less than the minimum wage. The Chancellor must fix it so their pay is topped up to 100%.”
Shadow Chancellor Anneliese
Dodds said businesses and workers had been pleading for certainty.
She accused Mr Sunak of “ignoring them until the last-possible moment after jobs have been lost and businesses have gone bust”.
Pointing out this was the Treasury’s fourth economic plan in just six weeks, she added: “Th e C h a n c e l l o r c a n change his mind at the last minute but businesses can’t.
“We need someone who is in front of the problems we face, not one who is always a step behind.” The Resolution
Foundation , which estimated extending the scheme would cost £6.2bi l lion a month , cal l ed it “huge but necessary”.
The Institute for Public Policy Research urged the Government to go further by extending the ban on evicting renters and strengthening the social security system.
Downing Street was forced to deny that extending the furlough was partly due to economic fears over the end of the Brexit transition on December 31.
The Bank of England yesterday forecast a 1% hit to the economy in early 2021, even if there is a deal with the EU.
It said the second lockdown would dent growth but predicted the UK would avoid a double-dip recession. Nevertheless, its Monetary Policy Committee still voted to unl eash anoth er £150bi l lion of quantitative easing – essentially printing new money – to boost lending and lower borrowing costs.
The bank also warned unemployment could nearly double by the middle of next year – rising from 4.5% to 7.75%.
Yesterday Sainsbury’s blamed its 3,500 job cuts on fewer people using in-store counters and the success of Argos departments in its supermarkets and online.
Chief executive Simon Roberts said: “These decisions are tough.”
However, the company risked a backlash after also announcing it was paying shareholders £230million in dividends while pocketing exactly the same in business rates savings through a Government measures to help firms hit by the virus.
The Centre for Retail Research is predicting 236,000 jobs will be lost in the retail sector alone this year, with more than 20,000 store closures.