Trade union calls for urgent government support for East Midlands aerospace firms with more jobs at risk

Unite, which represents workers throughout the industry, says more than £1billion could be wiped off the region’s economic output unless there is state intervention.

Regional secretary Paresh Patel said: “Aerospace is absolutely crucial to the East Midlands’ economy but the lack of action at Westminster means we now stand at five to midnight and could be looking at a very bleak future.

“Jobs are going by the day and our world-leading status is slipping away as other nations sense the competitive advantage in our government’s inaction.”

Around 25,900 people work in the sector across the East Midlands, with 45 manufacturing companies and 85 others in aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul.

With a huge decline in new orders as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, many companies are contemplating drastic cuts.

Unite's warning comes after aerospace parts firm SPS Technologies announced more than 350 job losses in the region, on the back of 100 more at Turbine Surface Technologies in Annesley.

Those announcements are among 13,000 redundancies so far industry-wide in the UK, including 3,000 at local giant Rolls-Royce.

The union is calling for an extension of the jobs retention scheme to prevent the premature loss of more jobs and skills, plus new investment to help the sector rebuild.

Paresh added: “Without the support this sector is crying out for we will lose thousands of the highly skilled, secure jobs we are told the UK needs and that the government wants to encourage.

“It is a travesty that the government has not followed the lead of other countries including France and Germany to provide specific support for what is a world class industry. Worse still, the UK government's silence on support gives our competitors a business advantage.”

Unite is urging everyone employed in the aerospace industry or indirectly associated with it to contact their MP and ask them to lobby the government for support. For details, see unitetheunion.org/ukaerospace.