Bakery 'betrayal' as 200 jobs axed

Employees were left reeling by yesterday's bombshell that they could lose their jobs at the Claywheels Lane facility.

Bosses said the move was designed to "stem the significant losses the site has increasingly incurred over the last few years and provide the factory with a stable platform for the future".

But Mr Blunkett called it "a betrayal of the promises given at the time of the fire and the subsequent takeover".

Fletchers suffered major fire damage last year and axed 80 jobs in February - less than a month after workers were assured their futures were secure thanks to a 160 million takeover by Vision Capital.

But management claim a review identified a range of uncompetitive loss-making product lines, which the firm is now proposing to axe.

That will mean a drop in the company's overall sales and so the factory will move to "a reduced working week".

A management statement said: "As a result fewer people will be needed, hence the potential redundancies."

If the proposals go ahead the new working arrangements will start from early December. Bosses say if the company does make people redundant, they will try to find them new jobs or training elsewhere.

But Mr Blunkett said: "At several meetings held jointly by Hillsborough MP Angela Smith and myself, local councillors and the management, we were assured there was a genuine commitment to substantial investment.

"Those assurances are now worth nothing.

"I hope the new management will now consider their responsibility for retraining, redevelopment and investment in the community, which will be hit so hard by the job losses."

General manager Peter Williams said: "We understand that this announcement is likely to cause concern for those affected and their families.

"We will be consulting fully with all potentially affected employees and keeping them fully appraised of the situation as it progresses."

Merlita Bryan-Hilton, district secretary for the Bakers, Food and Allied Workers Union, told The Star she was due to meet management on Monday.

n Star Opinion: P8