British defence giant BAE System is to close a factory in Wolverhampton and cut a total of 230 UK jobs from its vehicles business.
The company said its vehicles business now plans to finish its current manufacturing operations and then continue only with its supports services which will move to its Telford factory. The 70 jobs at the Woverhampton are likely to be cut, the company said. A further 100 jobs will be lost from the vehicle department’s Newcastle site along with another 60 from other facilities.
Press Association quoted BAE’s vehicle business managing director Jan Soderstrom as saying: “We have consistently said that we must reduce costs to remain competitive and secure a future for the business. We are creating a more efficient business to ensure we are the right size and have the right mix of skills to meet current and future customer needs.
“We regret the impact that this will have on our employees. We will work with employees and trade unions to explore ways of mitigating these proposed job losses, and do everything we can to support our people throughout this process.
“We will continue to meet all planned deliveries to our customers throughout this transition.”
The vehicles business currently employs a total of 700 people in the UK.
