Final Goodyear goodbyes as Wolverhampton site completely shuts down
Tyre manufacturing giant Goodyear has closed its doors for the final time after the last workers completed their final shift today.
A total of 12 workers, employed specifically to help with the closing down period of the Bushbury Lane site, turned up for their final shift at 6.30am.
By midday, the gates were closed on the workers with keys being handed over to management - marking the end of Goodyear's 90 year history in Wolverhampton.
The end of the final shift was greeted with sadness and bitterness by former employees of the site, all of whom were made redundant over the past two years since Goodyear announced it was closing the plant.
Remaining workers were greeted at the gate by plant protection workers Roger Simpson, 64, from Cannock, Steve Corbett, 61, from Shifnal and Ray Homer, 60, from Claregate, who took the time to shake their hands and welcome employees in for their last day.
Cars filtered through with each driver and the familiar faces wished well in their future.
Combined, the plant protection workers had been at the firm for 97 years.
Cyril Barratt, chairman of the Unite branch at Goodyear, said: "It has left a bitter taste in everyone's mouths.
"I am absolutely gutted that the place has closed. It feels like a break-up of a family.
"Goodyear was a family for people in Wolverhampton. Workers at the plant weren't just good employees, they were good people.
"It was a committed and loyal workforce that supported each other and people in the community.
"This really is the end of an era."
Wayne Devaney, of Wednesfield, worked at the plant for 28 years along with his later father Michael and his sister Bernadette.
He turned up to the final day with a scrap book of memories and photographs to show former colleagues to reminisce.
The 55-year-old, who worked in several roles at the site before taking redundancy and leaving in January 2016, said: "It's totally devastating to be honest.
"It was a great place to work and everybody worked so hard. We still keep in touch and keep an eye out for each other, you can't buy that sort of togetherness and unity.
"We built that place up from scratch and we were proud of what we did there. We were always the top of the company's league board for quality, productivity and efficiency.
"I think people that used to work there have struggled to adapt to work outside of Goodyear's. But that was because it was such a community, I don't think anyone will work at a place like that again."
Mr Devaney worked for Muller in Telford before taking on a job as a metal engineer at WRR Pedley, Willenhall.
In a statement, Goodyear said: “We are very grateful to our associates for their continued support and professionalism during the closure of the plant and we thank them for their continued work across this time to enable the site to be left in an appropriate manner.
"We have supported those affected by the closure with job fairs, training and assistance and we believe that the highly skilled, dedicated and professional associates we had will have future success in their careers.”
