A total of 14 people are to lose their jobs as Gurit UK announces redundancies at its Isle of Wight factory.
It has been confirmed to Island Echo that the redundancies affect various departments and functions at the St Cross Business Park site in Newport.
The rising cost of materials and supply chain issues have been blamed for the move.
The firm has made a number of redundancies over the years including 90 back in 2015 followed by the loss of 12 roles in January 2017. Just months later, in October 2017, a move of ‘prepreg’ production to Spain saw the loss of another 70 jobs, with more jobs hanging in the balance in 2018.
A spokesperson for the company has told Island Echo:
“The Gurit Newport production site has been and remains under significant pressure on cost and volume. Recent supply chain issues and an accelerated raw material costs contribute to an extremely challenging outlook, without any favourable changes to be expected in the wider market any time soon.
“The company has made progress in reducing production costs, increasing efficiencies, not replacing recent leavers and freezing non-essential recruitment. All these previous efforts have helped to mitigate part of the burden for the business. Hence, both situations in conjunction mean it is no longer sustainable to continue making a loss within this part of our business. Therefore, we were forced to consider labour cost reductions to maintain a viable business presence in the UK for the future.
“Gurit’s Newport management team will make every effort to facilitate this necessary change fairly, while continuing to servicing customers and remaining fully committed to maintaining a viable business in the UK”.
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The news comes just days after it was confirmed that 112 Islanders are to lose their jobs at Neutrik in Ryde.
What are my rights?
If you are made redundant you are normally entitled to statutory redundancy pay if you’re an employee and you’ve been working for your current employer for 2 years or more. Your redundancy pay will be:
- half a week’s pay for each full year you were under 22
- 1 week’s pay for each full year you were 22 or older, but under 41
- 1-and-a-half week’s pay for each full year you were 41 or older
Your weekly pay is the average you earned per week over the 12 weeks before the day you got your redundancy notice.
If you were made redundant on or after 6th April 2022, your weekly pay is capped at £571 and the maximum statutory redundancy pay you can get is £17,130. Length of service is capped at 20 years.
You must be given a notice period before your employment ends. The statutory redundancy notice periods are:
- at least 1 week’s notice if employed between 1 month and 2 years
- 1 week’s notice for each year if employed between 2 and 12 years
- 12 weeks’ notice if employed for 12 years or more
Nobody mention Brexit.
Taking back control one job at a time.
Or 90 jobs at a time pre Brexit in 2015!
Yes, newman. Also, don’t mention the 531 jobs lost in Southampton after the EU gave Ford a very cheap loan to move the factory to a non-eu country, one ran by a dictator.
my sympathywith these staff However looks like red funnel ,floating bridge and now Island line may be worth looking at for fast new employment.
Rise in costs… Like these corporations don’t make enough profit as it is. Disgusting. They do this every year.
Reducing labour costs ??? Have they ever toyed with the idea of reducing profit / shareholder grabs ? NO
That’s why they are based on the island: cheap labour.
Supply chain issues,! Like no fixed link unreliable ferries a lot more job losses to come .
Build more homes to be filled with our, the mainland and the worlds under-employed, working 20 hrs or less and claiming tax credits and free rent and council tax, that, surely will help….won’t it?
Proof the ferry companies are costing real jobs on the island. Also, the NIMBY lot will be happy, they love destroying local businesses and jobs.