Alstom and Government locked in talks over future of Derby factory
Alstom says it remains locked in serious talks over their Litchurch Lane site, where it's consulting to make up to 1300 job cuts
Major discussions remain ongoing to help save the future of a well-known train-making Derby factory.
Alstom says it remains locked in serious conversations with the Government over the uncertain future of its Litchurch Lane factory following a gap in production orders.
The company is consulting up to 1,300 job cuts at the factory, which has no confirmed workload beyond the first quarter of 2024. The factory has around 2,000 workers currently.
A lack of new rolling stock orders and the decision to axe the northern leg of HS2 has plunged the factory into deep uncertainty with workers unsure of what their future holds. The uncertainty has also caused job cuts within Alstom’s supply chain.
Before Christmas, a large cross-party group, including Labour leaders of Derby City Council, travelled to Westminster to lobby the Government to ensure Alstom has a secure future. But since that day-long event – which was hailed a success by council leaders – no further news has been announced regarding the site’s future.
This has worried the organisers of a 3,000-plus signature online petition calling on jobs to be saved in the city. Derby People’s Assembly say the planned cuts are set to “strip the city of railway engineering” – an industry Derby has been well known for generations.
An Alstom spokesperson said this week: ‘“Discussions are continuing with the UK Government over the future of train manufacturing in Derby.”
In November, the company said it was planning to make a large number of redundancies following failed talks with the Government to help solve a three-year production gap and to “secure a sustainable future for our rolling stock factory at Derby Litchurch Lane”.
Alstom said in statement at the time: “Alstom UK has been working with Government for the last six months with the joint objective of securing a sustainable future for our rolling stock factory at Derby Litchurch Lane, which has no confirmed workload beyond the first quarter of 2024.
“No committed way forward has yet been found and therefore it is with deep regret that we must now begin to plan for a significant reduction in activity at Derby by entering a period of collective consultation on potential redundancies at Litchurch Lane. We will fully support our dedicated colleagues during this exceptionally difficult time.”
Derby City Council leader Baggy Shanker said earlier this week the city council was still keeping a very close on the situation and supporting Alstom as much as possible. He said: “We have been continuing to call on the Government to take quick and immediate action to safeguard the jobs of hundreds of people and to secure the long-term future of rolling stock creation in Derby.
“Over the past few months, we have been working closely with our partners at Alstom and meeting with Government officials and trade union representatives to ensure the continuation of train manufacturing in Derby. We will continue to support Alstom and it’s workers as these discussions continue.”
A Department for Transport spokesperson said in December: “Rail manufacturing is an important part of the UK economy and we will work closely with Alstom as it continues to deliver its contractual commitments, as we do with all rolling stock manufacturers.”
“While this is a commercial matter for the company, we have already set up a dedicated cross-government taskforce to properly support workers at Alstom during what will be a concerning time.”