Following the transfer of a £100 million fish processing contract with Sainsbury’s to a Rosyth-based business earlier this year, Young’s started a formal consultation process with employee representatives on the possibility of closing its Fraserburgh Watermill Road site and its Grantown-on-Spey smokehouse with the loss of up to 900 jobs.
After extensive review, consultation with employee representatives and engagement with all interested stakeholders, Young’s Seafood Limited is now confirming the company’s decision to keep open its Fraserburgh Watermill Road and Grantown-on-Spey facilities.
This new plan - the ‘Alternative Option’ plan - was developed during the consultation process and involves retaining around 250 jobs.
Under the ‘Alternative Option’ plan:
- The Company will keep the Spey Valley site at Grantown-on-Spey open retaining the traditional smoking facilities at the site.
- The Fraserburgh Watermill Road site will stay open with a reduced operation focussed on hot and cold smoked Ready-to-Eat products.
- Manufacture of other products will gradually transfer to alternative Young’s sites in Scotland and England by May 2016. The phasing of this plan is subject to consultation with our retail customers.
Pete Ward, Chief Executive of Young’s Seafood Limited said: “Following extensive review, consultation with employee representatives and engagement with all interested stakeholders, we are now confirming our Company’s decision to keep open our Fraserburgh Watermill Road and Grantown-on-Spey facilities. This follows the decision by a major customer to transfer some of their business to a Rosyth-based supplier. We recognise the importance of the Fraserburgh and Spey Valley factories to their local communities and we are moving forward with a plan that will retain jobs at both of the sites. This decision has not been taken lightly and we’d like to say thank you for your continued dedication and commitment to the site during this challenging time. We would also like to say thank you to all other stakeholders, organisations and agencies that have worked constructively with Young’s to develop our plan.”
Young’s Seafood Limited has engaged with politicians, stakeholders and other interested parties and will continue to do so as part of the consultation.
Young’s Seafood Limited will continue to consult with employee representatives on the exact number and phasing of redundancies. The majority of redundancies are likely to take place in early 2016. The company has agreed enhanced redundancy terms for those affected with employee representatives, including help with finding alternative work.
