Diageo Cut 900 Whisky Jobs in Scotland

[John]

Drinks giant Diageo has announced it is to cut up to 900 jobs in Scotland including 700 jobs at Johnnie Walker in Kilmarnock.

The posts will go under a restructuring that will see the closure of its Port Dundas distillery in Glasgow and a packaging plant in Kilmarnock.

The firm said the closures would take place over the next two years and will make the business "more sustainable".

Diageo said the job losses would be offset by the creation of about 400 new posts through the expansion of a packaging plant at Leven in Fife.

The firm said about 700 jobs would go over the next two years with the closure of the Kilmarnock packaging plant in East Ayrshire.

Diageo said the plant faced "infrastructure limitations" which were not issues at its other packaging plants at Shieldhall in Glasgow and Leven in Fife.

The closure of Port Dundas Distillery in Glasgow and the neighbouring Dundashill cooperage will result in the loss of up to 140 jobs.

Diageo said work from Port Dundas could be met through the continued expansion of the Cameronbridge Distillery in Fife.

A further 30 jobs will also be cut at the Shieldhall packaging plant in Glasgow.

Although it is taking on work from the closure-threatened Kilmarnock packaging plant, Diageo said a £3m investment in the site and changes in working practices would allow for a reduced workforce.

The firm stressed that the net job losses would be about 500 posts in Scotland as the headline figure would be offset by jobs created elsewhere.

Job transfers

An £86m investment will see the construction of a new packaging hall to open in mid-2011.

Diageo said it hoped some of these jobs would be taken by employees transferring from Kilmarnock.

The restructuring plans will see about 80 office-based staff at Dundas House in Glasgow transfer to another location in central Scotland over the next two years.

Elsewhere, the company is planning a new £9m cooperage to be built at its existing Cambus site near Alloa by summer 2011.

This will result in the closure of Diageo's nearby Carsebridge cooperage.

The company envisages relocating 40 staff from Carsebridge to Cambus, together with some roles relocating from Dundashill Cooperage.

Diageo also plans to contract out operations currently undertaken at the Hurlford consolidation warehouse in Ayrshire and exit the site next year.

About 64 despatch warehouse jobs at Hurlford will be transferred under TUPE regulations to third party logistics company, Malcolm Group.

The 36 remaining Diageo jobs at Hurlford would be relocated to other sites.

The firm also said haulage of distillery "co-products" would be contracted out to a third party transport company, McPherson Ltd.

The 16 associated jobs in Speyside will be transferred under TUPE regulations.

Bryan Donaghey, managing director of Diageo Scotland, said: "These decisions have been extremely difficult to take. We have only reached them after an exhaustive review of all the possible alternatives.

"I am sorry for the impact this announcement will have on our employees and their families in Kilmarnock and Glasgow and the difficulty this will cause in Kilmarnock, where we are a major employer.

"We believe the plans announced today will help secure the sustainability of our business in Scotland.

"We will do everything we can to support our employees through this difficult time.

"We will also work closely with local political and community leaders in Kilmarnock so that together we can seek to address the impact this announcement will have on the town."

Government talks

Scottish Finance Secretary John Swinney described the announcement as "extremely disappointing".

"The Scottish Government is asking the company to reconsider this course of action and to look at alternatives which protect employment," he said.

"The First Minister has this morning spoken to the company and will meet senior executives tomorrow to make exactly that point.

"This will be a particularly worrying time for workers at Kilmarnock and Port Dundas."

Mr Swinney also said he wanted Diageo to guarantee its pledge not to make any compulsory redundancies for 12 months.

Grahame Smith, STUC general secretary said the announcement was "a massive blow" to the Diageo workforce and could have a "potentially devastating" effect on the Kilmarnock economy.

He said: "Diageo must urgently provide union officials with the full business plan used to justify these swingeing redundancies at hitherto profitable workplaces."

Last month Diageo, whose brands include Guinness, Smirnoff Vodka and Johnnie Walker whisky, said that markets around the world had weakened.

It reported that sales were down 7% in the three months to the end of March.

John

Source: BBC News

[John]

All The Diageo Job Losses and Jobs Created

700 lost at Kilmarnock packaging plant
140 lost at Port Dundas Distillery and Dundashill cooperage
30 lost at Shieldhall packaging plant
400 jobs created at Leven packaging plant
80 office jobs at Dundas House transferred
40 staff transferred from Carsebridge to Cambus sites
64 warehouse jobs at Hurlford transferred out
36 remaining Hurlford jobs relocated
16 jobs in Speyside transferred out

John

[William]

Just terrible news for the town and people of Kilmarnock to lose this many jobs. Surely the Scottish governmant should be asking Diageo to reconsider this course of action and to look at alternatives which protect employment.

William

[Andy M]

Diageo couldnt have picked a worse time for the employees effected by this.

Andy M

[Big Mac]

I am sure these closures at Port Dundas and Kilmarnock will have a devastating effect on both these communities, all in the name of profit. Surely they owed these workers the decency of trying to upgrade the current plants or at least building a new plant locally especially in the case on the Johnnie Walker packaging plant. Such a bad time to lose your job.

Mac

[Fergie]

Diageo will have to change what it says on the label of a bottle of Johnnie Walker - "bottled in Kilmarnock since 1820"

Fergie

[Charlie]

I have been reading in the press that the battle to save the 700 Johnnie Walker whisky jobs is due to intensify on several fronts and also across the political divide.

Finance Secretary John Swinney will visit Diageo officials and local council representatives in Kilmarnock, where the drinks giant is proposing to shed 700 jobs.

Labour MP Des Browne will visit the threatened packaging plant along with Mr Swinney.

Kilmarnock Football Club are also getting into the fight to save the Kilamarnock jobs, they are joining forces with local SNP MSP Willie Coffey to launch a petition against Diageo's plan.

Club chairman Michael Johnston said: "Diageo's decision to close the Johnnie Walker plant in Kilmarnock must be reversed. Kilmarnock Football Club will support the employees whose jobs are under threat and our local politicians in their campaign to keep Johnnie Walker in Kilmarnock where it was founded in 1820."

Mr Coffey, MSP for Kilmarnock, said: "In the face of such a potential hammer blow to the local economy, it is vital that we all band together to force Diageo to reverse their decision.

"Johnnie Walker and Kilmarnock FC are both vital to the life of this town."

First Minister Alex Salmond has urged drinks giant Diageo to reconsider its plans, which would mean the loss of 900 jobs through the Johnnie Walker closure and the closure of the Port Dundas grain distillery in Glasgow.

The job losses would, however, be partly offset by the creation of 400 jobs at a packaging plant in Fife.

After a meeting in Edinburgh with Diageo managing director Brian Donaghey, Mr Salmond said the company had agreed to hand over the figures behind its proposals for the Government and unions to study.

Charlie

[John]

This is what the Press & Journal had to say about it yesterday:

The battle to save 900 whisky jobs intensified yesterday with a vow by a senior minister to get the decision reversed.

Finance Secretary John Swinney made the pledge after visiting Kilmarnock where drinks giant Diageo plans to close the Johnnie Walker packaging plant with the loss of 700 jobs.

His comments came as Kilmarnock Football Club also threw its weight behind the fight to save the jobs.

Mr Swinney said: "We are determined to put forward a cohesive argument and initiatives that provide for an alternative to the proposals that Diageo set out."?

Mr Swinney was speaking after meetings in Kilmarnock with Diageo, Scottish Enterprise, East Ayrshire Council and local politicians.

The town's Labour MP, Des Browne, and SNP MSP Willie Coffey were also involved in yesterday's meetings.

The battle to save the Kilmarnock jobs opened up another front when the town's football club, with Mr Coffey, launched a petition.

Kilmarnock FC chairman Michael Johnston said: "Kilmarnock Football Club will support the employees whose jobs are under threat and our local politicians in their campaign to keep Johnnie Walker in Kilmarnock where it was founded in 1820."?

Alex Salmond urged drinks giant Diageo to reconsider its plans, which will mean 900 workers losing their jobs through the Johnnie Walker closure and the closure of the Port Dundas grain distillery in Glasgow.

The losses would be partly offset by creation of 400 jobs at a packaging plant in Fife.

John