Union priority to preserve employment and skills

September 16th: Unite, the UK’s leading union, is demanding that urgent action is taken to preserve the future of the workforce at Harland and Wolff’s yards in Northern Ireland, Scotland and England.

The union made its call after it was announced today that the company’s parent company had filed for administration. However, its individual shipyards and facilities in Belfast, Appledore, Arnish and Methil, continue to trade.

Harland and Wolff had been facing an uncertain future after the company failed to secure significant new funding in the summer.

An exercise in seeking new investment or a buyer for the company undertaken by Rothschilds is due to conclude on Wednesday (18 September) and Unite understands that over 20 companies have shown an interest in either purchasing all or part of the company or providing an injection of investment.

Unite Irish regional secretary Susan Fitzgerald said: “Harland and Wolff is of huge strategic importance and it is essential that all measures are taken to protect the workforce to preserve skills and ensure continuity of employment.

“Unite has been regularly meeting the government and management to ensure the long-term future of the company’s yards and facilities. It is vital that the right buyer is found, failing that the government should be prepared to intervene

“Workers at Harland & Wolff should be in no doubt that Unite has their back and will leave no stone unturned in securing a long-term viable future for the workforce.”

Unite, which represents most of the membership at Belfast and Appledore, has been meeting representatives of the department for business and trade on a regular basis since the company’s financial problems first surfaced.

Unite’s preferred option is to secure a single buyer for all of the company’s yards and that the  purchaser should be a company and has a history of shipbuilding, rather than a private equity outfit looking for a short-term profit.

In 2019 it was the union campaign led by Unite that ensured that Harland & Wolff continued to operate when it was previously threatened with closure.