45 steel jobs set to be axed in West Bromwich
Dozens of workers are set to lose their jobs in the Black Country as a major steel company axes more than 200 roles across the UK.
Liberty Steel UK is set to get rid of 207 jobs, including 45 in West Bromwich, in the next step in its restructuring and transformation plans.
It comes after the company announced plans to sell sites including West Bromwich and Kidderminster last May and instead focus on its core Greensteel operation in Rotherham.
Liberty has now launched a consultation with its employees and unions to complete the restructuring of its special alloys businesses ahead of a possible sale or partnership. The sites make complex steel for industries such as aerospace and energy.
It involves 162 roles going at the high value manufacturing Stocksbridge plant at Sheffield and 45 in the performance steels business in Albion Road, West Bromwich.
The company says some staff will be given the chance to work in Rotherham instead, where up to 161 roles will be created at the Greensteel scrap steel recycling plant, meaning an expected overall net loss of 46 roles.
The steel giant was heavily reliant on Greensill Capital, a financing company which went out of business in early 2021, raising worries about Liberty's future and the 5,000 people it employs in the UK
When the financing company went into administration, its lawyers revealed that it had around five billion dollars (£3.5 billion) of exposure to Liberty's parent company GFG Alliance.
Liberty also owns Liberty Speciality Steels Bright Bar in All Saints Road, Wednesbury, where some of the West Bromwich staff may be able to move to.
The company employs around 1,400 workers at Rotherham and Stocksbridge and says it is confident that restructuring will put these businesses on a sustainable footing.
Liberty says it wants to grow and invest in the Greensteel operation, with an ambition to build it into a facility that produces two million tonnes of recycled metal each year to feed its mills that produce long and flat products.
Jeffrey Kabel, chief transformation officer at Liberty Steel Group, said the special alloy businesses remained "high-potential" businesses with products prized by customers.
He added: "The steps we’re announcing today will help ensure they are competitive in the future, with job creation at our Rotherham plant enabling us to mitigate a large percentage of role reductions at other sites. It sets a strong platform for Liberty’s Greensteel expansion in which we will increase recycling of steel scrap in low carbon electric arc furnaces to meet growing demand in infrastructure and construction.”
Canaccord Genuity has been appointed by the group as its financial adviser to assist in the sale of Liberty's special alloys businesses.
Alun Davies, national officer for union Community, said the announcement provided "much-needed clarity" for the workforce.
He said: "The last year has been extremely difficult and we recognise change is required to secure the future of the businesses. For too long our members have been working under a cloud of uncertainty.
"Restructuring is always challenging, but the trade unions will engage constructively in the consultation process to safeguard the interests of the workforce. Under no circumstances will the unions accept any hard redundancies; every worker who wants a job must have one.
"The company’s plans to restructure the special alloys business were reviewed by the unions’ independent experts, who found them to be credible. However, if Liberty is to move forward with a sale of the business, the steel supply chain must be guaranteed and the unions fully consulted on all aspects of the process.”
Harish Patel, national officer for Unite, added: “This has been an exceptionally stressful period for our members and their families, who expect Liberty to deliver on promises to refinance the businesses and protect jobs. Our members have done an incredible job to keep the businesses going and the company must repay their loyalty.
"The Government must also play their part by stepping up to support Liberty, and all British steelmakers, by acting to bring our unaffordable energy prices into line with EU competitors. Liberty Steel is a strategically important business and has a crucial role to play producing green steels for a low-carbon economy.”
