Dismay at BAE job loss fears

Proposals which could see up to 450 jobs lost at one of the Fylde’s largest employers have today been met with dismay by union chiefs.
BAE Systems, Warton. John Cameron (UNITE).BAE Systems, Warton. John Cameron (UNITE).
BAE Systems, Warton. John Cameron (UNITE).

Jobs among executive staff at BAE Systems, including its operation at Warton Aerodrome, are thought to be at risk after staff were told the number of roles at that level were set to be “noticeably reduced”.

While Unite, which speaks for BAE staff at professional and manual level within the company, does not represent executive staff, many of those who could be affected are 
individual members within the union.

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John Cameron, Unite convener at BAE, said: “It’s not good news.

“I knew they were reviewing the executive population over the course of the summer.

“We’ve had our own difficulties with professional and manual staff over the years with redundancies.”

No official statement has been made by the firm on the plan, but Chris Boardman, managing director of the Military Air and Information Division, is believed to have told staff the number of executive roles would be “noticeably reduced”.

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The company employs around 13,000 in the entire division. Of those, around 2,000 are executive positions.

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The news comes weeks after the group reported a 10 per cent drop in sales in the first half of the year.

A BAE Systems spokesman said: “BAE Systems continually reviews its operations to ensure we are running as effectively and efficiently as possible.

“The business faces a number of challenges and with an extremely competitive global defence market, affordability is becoming an increasingly key element of securing business.

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“To achieve a profitable and sustainable long-term business, success in the market is essential and we need to ensure we are in the best possible position to secure those opportunities.

“As always, should any issues arise that directly affect our employees then our policy is to communicate with our employees first through the normal 
channels.”