70 jobs axed at Maryport firm
Last updated 11:14, Saturday, 30 August 2008
West Cumbria was dealt a hammer blow yesterday when it is believed 70 people were made redundant at one of its flagship firms.
The News & Star understood that Cumbrian Seafoods, the fish processing business, told workers at its factory at Solway Road, Maryport, that 110 jobs would go in total, with 40 transferred to other sites.
The news comes just 16 months after 105 jobs were axed at the company’s Maryport plants when work was switched to a new base at Seaham, County Durham.
But the latest losses have arrived in a far frostier economic climate with the credit crunch biting and the UK economy threatening to slip into recession for the first time since the early 1990s.
The firm supplies fish and seafood products to supermarkets including Tesco and Morrisons.
One worker told the News & Star: “It’s disgusting, absolutely disgusting. After all the promises we’ve had that this will not happen, they’ve gone and done it anyway.
“They are taking all of the Morrisons work to Seaham and that only leaves the Tesco stuff that we are going to do in Maryport.
“They’ve got two factories in the north east now and that side is going to take over everything. I’ve worked there for eight years and this is a massive blow for me, my colleagues and Maryport as a whole,” said the worker.
“With the economy the way it is, there couldn’t be a worse time to be put out of work.
“I’m 55 so it’s going to be very hard to find another job around here.”
The jobs will go at the end of a 30-day period of notice.
It is alleged that 20 staff will be transferred to the company’s Glendawn factory, in Maryport, and another 20 will be sent to a sister site in Whitehaven.
It leaves the Solway Road factory, once Maryport’s biggest employer, with just a handful of staff.
Cumbrian Seafoods was launched with a fanfare by flamboyant businessman Peter Vasallo in June 1997.
The firm quickly became one of the county’s biggest business success stories.
Last year it came 25th in The Sunday Times Profit Track 100 list, which said it had registered a 73 per cent growth in three years.
The businesses posted a £6.3m profit in 2006, up from £1.2m in 2003.
Bill Cameron, county councillor for Maryport West, criticised Mr Vasallo, claiming he moved on from Maryport when the grant money ran out.
He added: “I won’t be saying goodbye to him – he is hurting the people I represent.
“We welcomed this company when it came, but this is terrible news, particularly in the current economic climate.”
The announcement brings an end to months of speculation that large-scale job losses were imminent at the plant. Since the opening of its Seaham base last year, rumours have abounded that the Solway Road factory, the company’s main west Cumbrian operation, was under threat.
That was despite the firm committing £1m to new equipment there and promising to make it a “centre of excellence”.
Staff say work has been drying up at the site for months, with 18 people already laid off, many employees only working five or six hours a day and the number of lines of production reduced.
No-one from Cumbrian Seafoods would comment.
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MLegg@cngroup.co.uk
Typical, a large, 'out of area', company gets a grant employees lots of people and when the money runs out off they go, leaving large numbers unemployed. If the grant money had been shared among "local" business the employment opportunities would have been shared around thus if one went under only a small few would be affected. Local businesses are also much more loyal to the local area. Why can't we have some common sense back into govt. Why is big always best?
I feel very sorry for all those employed who are affected.View all comments on this article
Have your say
It would be nice to get an answer from Cumbrian Seafoods as to the position regarding production at Amble. The Seaham plant is state of the at and I am worried that production will be switched to Seaham from Amble and that Amble will close.
Come on Cumbrian Seafoods - let us in on the act!Posted by Steve Mason on 5 October 2008 kl. 23:10