Jobs relief for workers at Rolls-Royce
Jobs have been saved at Rolls- Royce’s Inchinnan factory, with all staff now protected from compulsory redundancies for at least five years.
The 575-strong team has been under constant threat since the start of the pandemic when flights were grounded and the need for civil aerospace services slashed.
Rolls-Royce confirmed in May last year that its maintenance, repair and operations division would effectively be wound up at Inchinnan and its 1,300-strong workforce was halved.
The Express revealed last week how an additional 30 to 40 jobs remained under review, while a forced unpaid two-week summer holiday was also being proposed by the company. But trade union Unite says both proposals are now off the table.
The union has signed a memorandum of understandings ( MoU) with Rolls- Royce chiefs which will halt all compulsory redundancies at the site and a second in Ansty, Coventry.
Steve Turner, Unite assistant general secretary, said: “The agreements safeguarding more than 650 jobs in Inchinnan and Ansty are testament to the hard work of our members at both sites who, alongside our fantastic team of shop stewards and officers, were determined to secure a bright future for their workplaces and communities.
“These agreements show exactly what can be achieved when employers and unions work together in a genuine and positive way.”
As well as safeguarding jobs, the MoUs for Inchinnan and Ansty state that Unite and Rolls- Royce will work together to bring new work to the sites, including that related to addressing climate change and developing green technologies.
Around 575 people are employed at Rolls- Royce’s Inchinnan site, which produces turbine blades and aerofoils, while more than 85 are employed at Ansty, where engine fan cases are made.
Mr Turner said the business now needed to look forward to respond to the challenges posed by the pandemic, Brexit and climate change.
But he added: “Companies like Rolls- Royce have the potential to drive a jobs recovery as they produce the green tech needed to meet our zero carbon targets, while cementing the UK’s position as the envy of the manufacturing world.
“Our manufacturing sector is key to meeting the immense challenges ahead. We now need government to be working much closer with both unions and industry to ensure that those challenges are met.”
Rolls- Royce confirmed in May 2020 that it was seeking to slash 9,000 jobs from its global workforce.
It made 555 people redundant from the Inchinnan site, while a further 100 employees agreed to move to England to work in the company’s Derby factory.
These agreements show exactly what can be achieved when employers and unions work together