Celanese Derby
After just three years of ownership, Celanese Corporation have announced the total closure of their plant at Spondon, finishing the last 464 jobs of a once 20,000 strong Derby workforce.
The Celanese workers make acetate products used in filtering, film and other industrial applications. The company excused the closure on the basis of the UK’s high energy costs. This is not about costs, but the looting and relocating of equipment.
Unite calls for the business to be sold on, but Celanese Corp uses the excuse of ‘commercial secrets’ whilst planning to lift plant to China. All Labour’s ex-cabinet minister Margaret Beckett could say at Derby’s May Day rally was that the plight of Celanese workers “would be considered”.
But Labour didn’t lift a finger for Rover – so we suspect New Labour’s ‘consideration’ will be for themselves and not Celanese workers.
Regardless of the election result – nationalise Britain’s remaining job-shedding manufacturing with compensation only on proven need – and as many banks as it takes to pay for it.
Graham Lewis, Long Eaton trades council, personal capacity
Striking to defend education jobs
Eleven Further Education (FE) colleges and three universities took strike action on 5 May. They were joined by protests at many other colleges around the country.
The strikes and protests are against job cuts. £190 million is being cut from FE and adult education budgets, threatening the jobs of 20,000 lecturers’ union UCU members. 400 jobs are at risk alone in London FE colleges.
