Steel firm workers fearing for their jobs – VIDEO
Steel firm workers fearing for their jobs – VIDEO
0 Comments | Star (Sheffield) (Sheffield, England), The, July 23, 2010
Doncasters FVC, a subsidiary of the giant Doncasters Group, is moving melting and casting operations from Sheffield to Teesside in a bid to cut costs.
Fourteen jobs are going at Garter Street in Attercliffe, nine of them in the foundry.
Around 35 staff will remain in the machining workshop and another 11 in the office – but many workers are worried their jobs will be the next to go.
Technical sales manager Keith Winkley joined Firth Vickers Stainless Steel, as it was then, in 1970.
“I feel very sad,” he told The Star.
“I see this as the end of an era for Sheffield. I have been working here 40 years, man and boy. When I started the name of Firth Vickers meant something.
“In those days we had 370 people working on site. It has dwindled since then – we made a lot of cutbacks last year – but shutting the foundry is a big change.
“I understand the business sense of what is happening but that does not make it any easier to see.
“I am 63 years old and have only two years to go until retirement. But I feel for the younger guys.”
Those younger colleagues include his own son Jason, 37, who works in the machining shop.
Operations manager Mark Walker said Doncasters Group decided to close the foundry down because the leasing costs were ‘astronomical’.
He said Doncasters used to own the site but decided to sell it in 2000 and lease it back.
He said the people losing their jobs today include four moulders, three foundry workers, two in maintenance and the rest in the office. Four will be employed to help transfer the technology to Teesside.
Alistair Schofield, divisional managing director of Doncasters Group’s speciality castings division, said: “We took the difficult decision to close the casting foundry at Doncasters FVC and transfer this part of the business to our sister operation Doncasters Paralloy when the lease expired.
“With cost pressures higher than ever due to the global economic downturn, it made sense to protect the future of the business by relocating the foundry.”
Welder Les Norton, 53, has been working at Garter Street for 31 years. His father worked there before him as a charge hand moulder in the foundry shop.
His job is safe for now, but he is worried it won’t be for long.
The dad-of-two from Firth Park said: “We are going to be following the other guys soon enough, I’m sure of that. We think there’s around three years left on the lease for the machining shop but I’ll be surprised if we last that long.
“I think the company is making a big mistake by getting rid of the foundry. There are only four or five companies in the world who can do what we can.”
Machinist Tom Middleton, 53, followed his father into Firth Vickers.
“This firm is a huge part of Sheffield’s past,” said the dad-of-three from Woodthorpe.
“It is heartbreaking. We’ve got lots of work on and plenty of orders – I can’t see why they are closing the foundry.”
Neil Herron, 58, from Wincobank, joined the firm four years ago when previous employer Neill Tools shifted production abroad.
“This is the end of an era for Sheffield,” said the dad-of-two. “Obviously we are very concerned for our jobs. Industry keeps moving out of the city.”
Sales manager Mr Winkley said: “This was always known as the city of steel
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