Council to support Burberry job cut workers

The brand could scrap the night shift at its site in Castleford

Workers at risk of losing their jobs at the Burberry manufacturing site in West Yorkshire will be offered support, the local council has said.

The luxury British fashion brand, which employs more than 650 people at its mill in Castleford, Leeds, has announced plans to cut some 1,700 jobs globally after it reported a £66m loss last year.

About 150 employees based at Coronation Mills, on Albion Street, could be affected due to the elimination of the night shift there.

Wakefield Council said it would help Burberry employees but that it also wanted the brand to continue to play an "important role" in the local economy.

'Cost-cutting drive'

Council leader Denise Jeffery said: "We know that everyone who works for Burberry will be understandably worried by this announcement and the proposed job cuts will cause a lot of uncertainty and anxiety for many local families.

"We are looking to get more information from Burberry about their plans and understand how they are going to engage with staff and the trade unions on these proposals."

Ms Jeffrey added: "We'll also look to offer support to any affected employees."

The job cuts form part of a wider cost-cutting drive at Burberry with the company announcing plans to double its savings target to £100m a year by the 2027 financial year.

The company reported a £66m loss last year

Burberry chief executive Joshua Schulman said most job losses would come from its head office teams around the world but the cuts would "naturally" be focused in the UK, where most of its staff are based.

The two main head offices of the brand - famed for its camel-coloured trench coats - are located in London and Leeds.

Mr Schulman confirmed staff rotas would be reorganised and that night shifts at the factory in Castleford would be scrapped.

It was announced in February that planning permission had been granted for the upgrade of the Castleford factory, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Burberry is famous for its trench coats with distinctive plaid lining

A spokesperson for the GMB union said it was a "sad blow" for the workers and for Castleford.

"Burberry is the town's biggest employer and a third of the workforce are going," a spokesperson said.

"GMB calls on Burberry to work with us to ensure non of the redundancies are compulsory and that support packages are in place for these workers."

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