Friday 16 September 2011

More job loses in the city well Mr perves your mandates not working is it

yet more redundancies in the city this time its HR Johnstone tiles  when will this stop can labour not see that its not working there little mandate isn't working i wonder what Joan walley saying now i can remember being down there working on a agency when she visited the factory when they opened the new kiln this time its HR where next  i wonder


Johnson Tiles to reduce workforce

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Friday, September 16, 2011
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JOB losses are being proposed at Johnson Tiles.
The Tunstall manufacturer has confirmed that it is currently holding a 30-day consultation on potential redundancies.
It has refused to reveal the figure that is being considered, but by law a company is obliged to run a 30-day consultation period if it is proposing between 20 and 99 redundancies.
Johnson Tiles, which employs more than 400 people at its Haregate Street base, said the changes are necessary to combat the increasing cost of energy and raw materials.
Managing director Stephen Dixon, pictured, said: "Following a review the board has decided to reshape the company's structure and business focus.
"The resultant changes are required to mitigate recent rises in energy and raw materials costs and at the same time recognise market uncertainty and weak consumer confidence.
"The changes will involve simplification of business processes, delivering improved service to customers.
"Regrettably these will result in job losses and job restructuring."
One employee, who asked not to be named, said news of the potential cuts came as a shock to the workforce.
He said: "We were called into a meeting where we were told there were going to be redundancies, but they haven't told us how many.
"We were under the impression the company was doing well, but they said that because of the rising cost of energy they were having to change the running of the business.
"It is a shock because everything we read seems to suggest Norcros is doing well; we are all shareholders now and all the communications we get seem to say that."
Johnson Tiles is part of the Wilmslow-based Norcros Group, which also owns fellow Tunstall business Norcros Adhesives, Triton Showers in Nuneaton and a number of companies in South Africa. In its most recent trading update in July, Norcros said group revenue for the 13 weeks to July 3 rose by 10 per cent compared with the same period last year.
At Johnson Tiles, sales rose by 19.5 per cent. UK revenue was up 25.5 per cent, but export sales dropped by 10 per cent.
In June, Norcros posted a 60 per cent increase in trading profit for the year to the end of March, from £7.3 million to £11.7 million.
Sales reached £192.4 million, up 13.4 per cent from £169.6 million.
It did not reveal separate figures for Johnson Tiles, but said annual sales at the company rose by 12.4 per cent.
Garry Oakes, assistant general secretary at ceramics union Unity, said: "We're pretty well-recognised at Johnson Tiles and we've been told there are going to be some reductions, but we haven't been told a figure so we won't know the details until we've had some talks with the company.
"What we will try and do then is reduce the number of redundancies through various means.