Staff at Vauxhall’s Merseyside plant have walked out over planned job cuts.
A further 241 positions in the Ellesmere Port side are set to be axed over the course of the New Year following a combined 650 redundancies in 2018.
Vauxhall’s parent company PSA Group confirmed that the move is part of a ‘critical’ restructuring but insist it is not connected to uncertainty over Brexit.
Some workers left their post upon hearing Friday’s news of the latest round of lay-offs, which the car manufacturer hope to achieve through voluntary redundancies.
“The 2019 plan encompasses site compression, implementation of new technologies and other transformation activities which will impact on headcount requirements,” read a Vauxhall statement.
“This restructuring requires a planned phased reduction in headcount by 241 heads during 2019.
“This restructuring is critical to ensure that the Ellesmere Port plant develops its competitiveness during this difficult time within the industry.
“The restructuring is necessary to make it a competitive plant when compared to the benchmark.
“The company confirmed that it remains committed to achieve this essential restructuring without having to utilise compulsory redundancies.”
The Unite union revealed that they are seeking assurances from Vauxhall over the future of the Ellesmere Port plant.
Mick Chalmers, Unite’s regional coordinating officer, said: “Vauxhall’s Ellesmere Port workers have made huge sacrifices and worked hard to ensure the carmaker recently returned to profit for the first time in two decades.
“Further job losses will come as a sickening blow for them and their families in the run up to Christmas and will further heighten the anger over the uncertainty surrounding the future of the plant.
“Unite will be offering our members maximum support and pressing for guarantees of no compulsory redundancies.
“Unite will also be seeking urgent assurances and continue to press for PSA to remove the uncertainty surrounding the plant by committing new models to Ellesmere Port beyond 2021.
“PSA should be clear. Unite will not tolerate the death by a thousand cuts of Ellesmere Port and will leave no stone unturned in securing the future of the plant and its skilled workforce.”