Shafted by AEI? Cables

Event published by Reel News Newcastle

Event date: May 24, 2012 12:30

Tagged as: social_struggles

Places: birtley

Hello (deleted),

I met you at the rally in Exhibition Park today, where you expressed interest in our cause. As I didn't have time to explain our situation fully, I've attached a brief summary of the events of the last twelve months
This month sees the first anniversary of the unfair dismissal by AEI management of one hundred and twenty six long term employees, and we hope to mark the occasion with a short march from our weekly meeting place in Barlow Mow village hall, to a public space opposite AEI Cables where we plan to hold a demonstration to bring attention and win publicity for our case. The march will start at 12:30 on Thursday 24th May, and we hope to remain outside the factory gates while the afternoon shift arrives and the morning shift departs (roughly 1:30 to 2:15). We would like to ask and invite you and any of your colleagues to come along, join us and lend your help and support to our cause on the day.

Yours,

(deleted)
on behalf of the Shafted by AEI committee

AEI Cables Ltd is an electric cable manufacturer, one of the major employers in the town of Birtley, Tyne and Wear. The company was established in 1929 and opened on it's present site in 1950. It was taken over by Paramount Communications Ltd of India in 2007.

On Thursday, 26th May 2011, AEI Cables Ltd informed the workforce of their intention to announce around one hundred redundancies, to claim insolvency and to apply for a Company Voluntary Arrangement.

 On Friday 27th May 2011, without consultation or notice, commencing at 10 a.m. 126 employees, most with well over thirty year's service, were informed, either in person or by letter to their home address, that their contract had been terminated by AEI with immediate effect. The first two employees thus terminated were the GMB union local branch chairman and the union branch secretary. Factory management later congratulated themselves on local television news for having saved the remaining 189 jobs in the factory.

 In the eight months prior to this announcement, union representatives had repeatedly asked why temporary workers employed by AEI were being retained and trained on key jobs while full time employees were engaged in menial tasks such as sweeping up. No answer was forthcoming.

 Each individual thus made redundant was informed that, due to the company's insolvency, no redundancy payment would be made. Instead redundant employees were advised to apply to the government Insolvency Service through Insolvency Practitioners Hacker Young. The taxpayer has thus taken on the bill for these 126 redundancies as well as for the ninety days statutory notice payment these former employees later received. AEI Cables paid nothing. The amount paid to each redundant employee by the Insolvency Service was the government defined minimum; enhanced redundancy agreements in place at AEI from previous pay and conditions negotiations were no longer applicable.

Twenty-four temporary employees were retained at the time of the redundancies. These temporary employees would have been entitled to no redundancy payment, yet employees of long service and decades of experience were chosen for redundancy before these minimally trained, far less experienced, temporary employees.

Each person involved appealed against the redundancy and asked what selection criteria had been used. The company refused to consider any appeal, citing the CVA and the need for swift action to save the company, and claiming that the whole process had been carried out in less than seventy two hours, but stating that, even if correct redundancy procedure had been followed, those same employees would still have been selected.

Local MPs and Union leaders have been approached on several occasions since the redundancies took place but continue to show reluctance to become involved in the matter, or to offer other than minimal help or guidance to the people affected by it

AEI Cables Ltd is still trading, and continues to take on temporary workers, performing tasks previously carried out by persons made redundant. During the local news broadcast mentioned above, a temporary worker was shown being trained to run the machine previously operated by the now redundant GMB union branch chairman.

 Does this mean that any company in this country can now terminate the contract of any of it's employees, at any time, without notice or consultation, and without being liable for any redundancy payments and expect the British taxpayer to fund all such payments, in order to replace those people with workers on temporary contracts, to be hired and fired at will? Does a Company Voluntary Arrangement supersede British Employment Law?  If so, then have not the rights of every employed person in this country been, at a stroke, wiped away?

(deleted)

On behalf of the 126 ex-AEI employees.

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