800 workers at the HP site in Erskine, Scotland, UK, were recently told to be losing their jobs. HP has decided to relocate production to the Czech Republic. Workers working at the HP site were employed by Manpower, on an agency basis. The plant has no trade unions
800 workers at the HP site in Erskine, Scotland, UK, were recently told to be losing their jobs. HP has decided to relocate production to the Czech Republic. Among the dismissed are workers who have been employed at the Erskine site for up to 25 years. Workers working at the HP site were employed by Manpower, on an agency basis. The plant has no trade unions. The loss of employment on this scale is a crushing blow for the local community.
Workers have been told that the manufacturing in the Czech Republic will be undertaken by Foxconn. Technically the workers are entitled to apply for work at the Czech plant, said Manpower. But even if the Erskine workers would be willing to undertake this, they were warned that Foxconn would again immediately dismiss them as Foxconn does not not fancy to take on workers from the Erskine site.
Some of the Erskine workers, however, have been to the Czech Republic to train the local workers to do their jobs.
Source: Jim McCourt at the Inverclyde Advice and Employment Rights Centre.
