Nestle are planning to axe almost 600 jobs in the UK with the closure of factory and some of the products will be switched to Europe.
The confectionery giant who are Swiss owned are proposing to close their Fawdon site in Newcastle upon Tyne at the end of 2023.
There will be a loss of around 475 jobs and a further 98 job cuts in York as they are proposing to make changes to their confectionery manufacturing for the future.
Nestle will make ยฃ29.4m investments in their York and Halifax factories which are intended to โsupport the long term success.โ
The company said, โNestle Confectionery has an ambitious business strategy in the UK and these proposals are intended to support our long-term success in an increasingly competitive category.
โThe proposed changes would create a more efficient manufacturing footprint and, in turn, allow greater strategic investment in Nestleโs biggest confectionery brands.
โWe have chosen to announce these proposals as early as possible to provide the maximum time for consultation with our colleagues and trade unions.โ
The GMB union said it is โsickeningโ that lives are being โruined in a ruthless pursuit of profits.โ
GMB national officer Ross Murdoch said, โTo ruin hundreds of lives in a ruthless pursuit of profits, to the very workers whoโve kept the company going during a global pandemic, is sickening.
โNestle is the largest food producer in the world, with astronomical profits. It can afford to treat workers right.
โInstead, theyโve allowed factories to deteriorate, outsourced production overseas and now slash almost 600 jobs.โ
Nestle said in a statement said, โThe decision to propose Fawdonโs closure follows significant investment and a sustained effort by the factory team to reduce that complexity and introduce new products in recent years.
โThe skilled and dedicated team at Fawdon have worked tirelessly to deliver those changes and these proposals are absolutely no reflection on their efforts.
โIf these proposals go ahead, we would expect, in future, to be manufacturing a higher volume of products overall while operating a smaller number of factories.
โWe do not under-estimate the impact that the closure of the Fawdon factory would have on the local area and, as part of the consultation, we want to work with the local community to find ways that we can support the area and our employees if these proposals were to go ahead.
โWe believe these proposals would strengthen the UKโs position as a critically important hub for Nestle confectionery and home to the expert manufacture of many of our most popular brands including KitKat, Aero and Quality Street.โ
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