Jobs go as Tanfield fights the recession

Feb 9 2009 by Graeme King, The Journal

MANUFACTURING firm Tanfield Group has made dozens more redundancies as it battles to get its cost base right in tough economic times.

The Washington-based company had already reduced the workforce at its Vigo Centre factory by 85 posts last August from an original total of 400 staff.

Now the company has indicated numbers have fallen by about the same number again, through a mixture of redundancies and natural wastage – taking numbers down to around 230.

The second big cut in numbers has come just as Tanfield has announced a major push into the US market with a joint venture being put together alongside financiers Lincoln Woods of New York.

Tanfield operates Smith Electric Vehicles and Upright Powered Access divisions in Washington, and says it is considering a shorter working week for staff – as well as making job cuts.

The company has already introduced three-day working at its engineering services division in Tanfield Lea, County Durham, where the company shed 30 jobs last year.