Davy Thompson, Unite Regional Coordinating Officer, on behalf of
the Confederation of Shipbuilding & Engineering Unions,
expressed his acute disappointment with news that a further 280 job
losses would be brought forward at Bombardier in Belfast:
“Unite is very disappointed with this devastating news. Only last
month management announced ninety-five redundancies and
highlights our concerns that the Airbus agreement secured in the
last fortnight has not provided any long-term guarantees to
Northern Ireland workers.
“This news is all the more concerning as it comes despite
management pronouncement that the Airbus acquisition of a 50.01%
stake in the C Series programme might result in a potential
doubling of production on site. Unite has highlighted the fact
that Airbus paid nothing for this stake and that it will only
come into effect in the second half of 2018, means that the deal,
while providing some hope for the C Series in the future, has
made little to no impact on the financial pressures faced by the
company in the present.
“The jobs to be lost are functional as opposed to operational
meaning losses will be concentrated outside the main production
lines but this will be devastating news for the workers concerned
and their families in the run-up to the end of the
year.
“Unite is calling on management to review this decision. We do
not agree with the case being made against retention of
functional staff onsite. This decision is premature given the
potential for jobs growth in the C Series and opportunities for
additional employment on site with existing legacy products.
“At a time when the unions and the broader Bombardier workforce
in Northern Ireland are leading efforts to put the pressure on
political leaders to use their leverage on Boeing and the US
administration to rescind the 300% tariffs threatened on the C
Series, it is very saddening that our efforts are rewarded by
this announcement. Unite is calling on Bombardier to reconsider
these redundancies and lift the threat to its workers in Northern
Ireland at this time”, Mr Thompson said.
