Another 200 redundancies in depressed car industry

Press, 13 November 1982, Page 1

Another 200 redundancies in depressed car industry

PA Wellington About 200 more Hutt Valley and Wainuiomata car industry workers face the prospect of Christmas dole queues, after receiving redundancy notices yesterday.

The three Wellington companies that announced layoffs blamed the severe slump in the new car market, which has already led to dismissals, extended Christmas shutdowns, and voluntary redundancies. In Wainuiomata. redundancies at a car component firm. Brugger Industries, totalled 100: in Petone. 71 New Zealand Motor Corporation workers were laid off; and in Upper Hutt. 18 Repco employees were made redundant. Repco. a component manufacturer, also announced 14 lay-offs at its Panmure plant in Auckland. Brugger's managing director. Mr Frank Brugger. said the possibility of more re-

dundancies was high if the slump became worse. It had been very painful to lay off 100 of his <350 staff. If business improved, he would try to re-employ those made redundant, he said. Brugger Industries has been in Wainuiomata for 12 years and is one of the town's biggest employers. The company examined family situations before deciding who would be laid off. rather than adopting a firston last-off policy. The workers received four weeks’ notice. In October. Brugger Industries laid off 88 employees, half the work-force, at its Auckland factory. When 71 of N.Z.M.C.’s 258 Petone staff were made redundant yesterday, the plant manager. Mr R. Bartlam. said that the company had explored every way to avoid the dismissals. It had investigated and negotiated for the assembly of additional brands entirely new to the Petone plant, but

the proposals had not come to fruition. With the market slump and increased stocks, the company had no option but to reduce production, he said. The redundant staff will get four weeks notice, holiday pay. and Christmas and New Year holiday payments. Staff will also be given as much time off as they want ■during their notice, so that they can look for jobs. Repco said it would make strong submissions to the Industries Development Commission when its inquiry restarts on Tuesday, in the hope that the commission would modify its draft recommendations. The managing director. Mr Robert Stephens, said that implementation of these recommendations would have a shattering effect on the component manufacturing industry. No other Wellington component manufacturers said they had plans for redundancies. but most expressed concern about the state of the industry.