Nearly 150 staff face losing jobs at avaiation firm
ellis.lane@reachplc.com
ALMOST 150 workers are facing redundancy at GE Aviation in the county, a union has said. The aerospace company is looking to make 142 members of staff redundant at its factory in Bishop’s Cleeve.
The move, which follows a further 70 job losses at GE Aviation’s propeller plant in Gloucester, has led the Unite union to criticise the Government.
Negotiations on the job losses are already underway and it is hoped that of the 142 proposed redundancies can be mitigated by the creation of 37 new roles, as part of the restructuring process.
There are more than 1,600 workers currently employed at the site, which designs and manufactures electronic and mechanical systems for commercial and military aeroplanes, and its largest customers include Boeing and Airbus.
Matt Allen, Unite regional officer, said: “The announcement of the latest round of job losses will come as a bitter blow to the affected workers and this will be a highly worrying time for them and their families.
“Unite will be ensuring that the job losses are voluntary rather than compulsory and that our members are fully supported throughout this process.
“The fact of the matter is that these job losses are a direct result of the Government’s failure to follow the lead of other European nations and provide bespoke long-term support to the aerospace industry.
“The UK is a world leader in aerospace but the government is simply not doing enough to support employers and preserve the jobs of highly skilled workers.”
Unite will be seeking to ensure that the redundancies are voluntary rather than compulsory in nature.
The redundancy process is expected to be completed shortly before Christmas.
Mr Allen added: “The job support scheme is already proving to be ineffective and although of good intention, it is failing to support and take-up from companies and workers due to the short term nature of the scheme.
“The Government is pushing too much of the cost away from the treasury and onto companies and the workers.
“This is not what France and Germany are doing.
“This is putting UK manufacturing at a disadvantage, it is damaging confidence, damaging jobs and will ultimately damage the economy.
“We appreciate the support given to us by the constituency MP - Laurence Robertson - who has written to the chancellor on behalf of Unite to push for further support for the aerospace industry but it is clear that much more needs to be done by the government if we want to retain the UK’S standing as a global leader within the industry.”
In reference to other jobs losses at GE Aviation plants in Wales, the company has said proposals to reduce its workforce are due to “unprecedented impact of Covid-19 on the commercial aviation industry”.