Midlands dealt devastating jobs blow as GE cuts 1,100 workers

The West Midlands has been dealt a devastating employment blow with the announcement by General Electric that it is to cut 1,100 jobs from its UK operations – the majority of them in Stafford and Rugby.

The announcement is part of a global restructuring by the transformer giant, which will see 12,000 jobs axed in its power business – 18% of the division’s 55,000-strong global workforce.

The engineering giant said the move was to help it save around $1bn next year as it reacted to declining demand for fossil fuel power from around the world.

The company said it had not taken the decision lightly, but the changes were necessary in order that it remained competitive.

Staffordshire County Council’s economic growth leader Mark Winnington said the move was a devastating blow to Stafford.

“We will be working with the LEP, borough council and other partners to ensure we are doing all we can to support anyone affected,” he said.

“We do not know the detail yet, other than this is part of a global strategy by the company and does not just affect the UK.

“GE has reaffirmed its commitment to the UK and of course has recently completed its second new facility at Redhill Business Park. We believe as such, it will continue to be one of our flagship companies.”

The announcement took some of the gloss off a new report highlighting that investment totalling nearly £400m in Staffordshire business developments since 2014 had led to the creation of more than 13,000 jobs.

Of the £383m invested so far, £56m has come directly from the county council.

Major schemes highlighted included: the i54 site in South Staffordshire – home to Jaguar Land Rover’s Engine Manufacturing Centre, Redhill Business Park in Stafford – ironically home of the new GE facility and Kingswood Lakeside in Cannock. The county council is also supporting development at Branston Locks, near Burton and Bericote Four Ashes in South Staffordshire.

Commenting before the GE announcement, Cllr Winnington said: “Staffordshire’s economy is in healthy shape and this report demonstrates how far we have come in a relatively short time. We have seen considerable investment in the last three years which has seen significant returns and will result in the creation of thousands of jobs.”

Britain’s largest union, Unite, warned GE of cutting ‘too far, too fast’ and has demanded guarantees on no compulsory redundancies.
National officer Linda McCulloch said: “General Electric is in danger of cutting too far, too fast and leaving itself ill equipped to meet the challenges of the changing power generation market.

“These proposals will be a shock for General Electric’s loyal workforce and deal a major blow to the Midlands’ economy which will be deprived of highly skilled well-paid jobs because of this announcement.

“Over the coming days and weeks Unite will be supporting our members and scrutinising the company’s business case as we fight to save as many jobs as possible.”

“Unite will also be seeking guarantees from General Electric that there will be no compulsory redundancies and that there will be redeployment opportunities for workers wishing to stay with the business.”