Brewery future could be at stake

Negotiations with staff have been dragging on since January when the firm announced 27 redundancies as part of a shake-up.

At a meeting between managing director Paul Baker and union officials yesterday , the company, which employs more than 350, said the new working conditions were crucial to the firm's future.

Mr Baker said that the changes to working practices were against a backdrop of a crisis in the UK brewing industry.

He said: "It is imperative that we respond and react to what is going around us otherwise there will be no long term future at all." He said changes were needed to ensure the firm's long term future as a business with a "well trained, skilled, flexible and committed workforce with earnings and employment packages standing comparison to any other progressive company in our industry". He added: "We accept that people are always nervous of change in working practices, but change there must be."

Employees are to receive letters within the next few days to explain the situation.

A new Thwaites warehouse and distribution depot being built at Shadsworth is scheduled to be up and running by the autumn and it is understood the company is determined to have the new site agreement in place by then.

One employee, who did not wish to be named, said there were a number of issues about the new contracts which staff were not happy about. Some of the changes in conditions of service are understood to relate to areas such as shift working arrangements.

The redundancies in January were partly blamed on the huge amount of cheap beer flooding across the Channel as one of the major problems behind job losses throughout the industry.

The regional brewing industry is undergoing major changes with many firms pulling out of brewing or announcing major job losses.

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