Construction, demolition and agricultural equipment maker JCB is creating hundreds of jobs in order to respond to an increased number of orders worldwide.
The company is to hire up to 350 new agency workers (for roles ranging from welders to machinist, paint sprayers and assemblers) at its facilities in the UK, with most jobs available at the Rocester headquarters, at JCB Earthmovers in Cheadle and at JCB Heavy Products in Uttoxeter.
The recruitment spree follows the securing of two orders for more than 1,000 machines, worth £36m, and a £60m contract from the Brazilian government.
In the past year the company, which reported record sales for 2011 (£2.75bn), has taken on over 850 people. JCB currently employs around 6,300 people in the UK, of which more than 5,000 are in Staffordshire.
Gordon Richardson, GMB union convenor at JCB, said: “The two recent order announcements have been greeted with great excitement. There is an ongoing agreement to recruit agency workers into full-time employment as part of the core workforce. With the uncertainty of employment in this region the announcements have come at an opportune time. JCB seems to be bucking the trend when all we hear around us is gloom and doom.”
According to Blue Arrow, the recruitment company the jobs are available through, the benefits of the new agency roles include 28 days paid holiday, overtime payments and a competitive salary. These will initially be temporary roles, but there could be opportunities for permanent positions based on performance.
In the meantime, 40 new jobs were created at the JCB Transmissions plant in Wrexham, through a £2m investment that was announced two months ago.
