240 job losses at Airbus supplier in Wrexham is 'devastating'

Up to 240 jobs are set to be lost at the Magellen Aerospace plant in Wrexham.

The company employs hundreds of people in north Wales and has sites in Wrexham and Deeside.

The company is an Airbus supplier and the redundancies will effect almost half of the current employees at the site. Unite has described the news as devastating to the workers at the Llay plant and has warned of "huge" economic consequences for north west Wales.

Whilst Unite recognises that there is intense pressure on the aerospace sector at present, it is crucial that Magellan are in a position to pick up production levels quickly once the pandemic and its effect on the sector eases. If Magellan loses almost half of its highly skilled workforce, then bouncing back in a post Brexit economy becomes extremely difficult.

Now is not the time for rash decisions. Magellan need to hold their nerve and work with us to preserve jobs and find a way through the current slowdown in the sector. Magellan and in particular its owner Murray Edwards have a moral obligation to its loyal workforce and the communities that they and their families live. Mr Edwards should be digging into his very deep pockets and ensure that Aerospace manufacturing not only survives in North East Wales but indeed thrives into the future. There must be an urgent overhaul of the company’s business strategy so that in future they are shielded from the ‘all eggs in one basket’ business model that they currently have.

Unite will be doing everything possible to support our members during this difficult and worrying time. – PETER HUGHES, UNITE WALES REGIONAL SECRETARY

Magellan Aerospace is a Canadian based company and warned it was "reviewing all its operations" during the Covid-19 pandemic.