Thousands of jobs at risk as Tata ‘presses ahead with plan to close furnaces’

Steel giant Tata is to press ahead with plans to close blast furnaces at its Port Talbot plant, threatening more than 3,000 jobs, according to sources.

Unions were meeting the company on Thursday after presenting alternative proposals aimed at saving jobs in the town.

Sources said Tata rejected the plan and were pressing ahead with proposals for a greener form of steelmaking to cut emissions and stem financial losses.

Consult

Unions will consult their members on how to respond to job losses, with industrial action not being ruled out.

Sources said Tata accepted a union plea to keep the hot strip mill open over a transition period, supporting hundreds more jobs.

A Tata Steel spokesman said ahead of the meeting: “We have recently announced a joint agreement between Tata Steel and UK Government for a proposal to invest in state-of-the art Electric Arc Furnace steelmaking in Port Talbot.

“We are committed to meaningful information sharing and consultation with our trade union partners about the plan to develop sustainable steelmaking in the UK and to find solutions for concerns they may have.

“While those discussions are ongoing it would not be appropriate to comment further.”

‘Devastating’

Economy Minister, Vaughan Gething said:“We are in discussion with Tata Steel UK and the recognised trades unions and have approached the UK Government regarding proposals concerning the future of the company’s operations in Wales.

“This is not just an issue for Wales, steel is a sovereign asset and should be treated as such by the UK Government.”

Plaid Cymru members for South Wales West Luke Fletcher and Sioned Williams said: “Tata’s decision to push ahead with potentially 3,000 job losses in Wales is absolutely devastating. Plaid Cymru is standing in solidarity with all the workers at this time and we stand ready to support those who need it.

“Port Talbot is Tata’s largest site in the UK, and workers here will be incredibly worried about this”.

“Decarbonisation should not be at the expense of workers, and currently we’re seeing highly skilled workers, who should be playing a part in that transition, being thrown on the scrapheap.

“Rather than cutting jobs, Tata should focus on retraining and reskilling, so that workers could transition to carbon-neutral steelmaking. The UK Government and Welsh Government must step in to make sure that those who face job losses get support urgently.

“This is going to have a devastating impact on not only the people of Port Talbot and its neighbouring communities but on the local and national economy.”

Local economy

Welsh Liberal Democrat leader Jane Dodds added: “I am deeply disappointed to hear that Tata Steel will be closing their remaining blast furnaces in the UK, something which could have a devastating impact on communities across the country, particularly in Port Talbot, where the local economy is reliant on the nearby steel plant.

“The UK Conservative Government, through their inability to support investment into UK steel, has failed towns like Port Talbot across the country.

“If the UK Government was willing to implement a real and sustainable industrial strategy that protected jobs whilst simultaneously supporting the transition to low carbon sectors, we wouldn’t find ourselves in this mess.

“But now we are here, on the verge of witnessing the destruction of Port Talbot.

“The Prime Minister and his cabinet will never know what it’s like for the thousands of workers at risk of losing their jobs, they will never know the constant worrying and anxiety that comes with the prospect of losing one’s livelihood.”

Decline

Stephen Kinnock, Labour MP for Aberavon, home of the Port Talbot steelworks, said: “Tata’s decision to follow the Conservative business model of managed decline for British steelmaking will cause the job losses of 3,000 hard-working men and women, each of whom have dedicated their lives to an industry which underpins Britain’s automotive industry, railways, defence sector, consumer goods, construction, wind turbines and so much more.

“Global demand for steel is actually growing, but by pursuing a narrow electric arc furnace-only model, Tata Steel will be unable to seize the commercial opportunities of the future, while at the same time leaving Britain more dependent on imported steel from countries whose governments won’t always have Britain’s best interests at heart.”

The National Trade Union Steel Coordinating Committee said in a statement: “The steel unions met today with a senior Tata Steel delegation led by Koushik Chatterjee, and the company responded to the multi-union plan laying out an alternative decarbonisation strategy for Tata Steel UK.

“We will be communicating the outcomes of the meeting to our members in the first instance, as is right and proper, and we will make a further more detailed public statement in due course.”

Charlotte Brumpton-Childs, GMB national officer, said: “Large-scale job losses would be a crushing blow to Port Talbot and UK manufacturing in general.

“It doesn’t have to be this way – unions provided a realistic, costed alternative that would rule out all compulsory redundancies.

“This plan appears to have fallen on deaf ears and now steelworkers and their families will suffer.”

A spokeswoman for the Prime Minister said she could not comment on “speculation in relation to commercial matters”.

“More broadly, our commitment to the steel sector is clear.

“We committed £500 million of the UK Government support that will transform the site and also protect thousands of jobs.

“We will continue to work closely with the industry and with Tata steel.”