WORKERS AT the Michelin tyre factory in Dundee fear for their future after being asked to volunteer to take time off work, write Graeme Strachan and James Williamson.

The plant is having to cut back production again as the global economic downturn affects sales. The French company announced plans to close a factory in Turin, Italy, this week with the loss of 700 jobs.

One employee at the Baldovie plant said colleagues were concerned that the temporary changes to their shifts were “the beginning rather than the end” of cuts.

He said the mood among the workforce was one of “total apathy” and he criticised management for a lack of communication.

The company told workers that production will slow towards the end of this month and they will be asked to take up to three days off on half pay.

It follows a week-long shutdown in October also designed to reduce stock levels to match falling demand.

Factory personnel manager Ian Peart said, “The cuts we’ve announced were not foreseen at the time of the previous cuts, so it’s a developing situation.”

Mr Peart said despite concerns among the workforce about the potential for redundancies, he did not foresee any job losses at present.

“We’re trying to take a balanced approach to the problem to protect the factory.

“The market will come back and with that we will return to full running, but in the meantime we need to concentrate on running the factory as efficiently as we can.”

He added, “The situation is very uncertain at present and the company has to manage its stock levels carefully. All tyre manufacturers are facing this problem, which comes from a downturn in the vehicle industry.

“When will it stop? It’s not possible to answer that question because the UK is about to slip into recession.”

Shop steward for Unite at Michelin Dave Brady said, “They are asking people to volunteer—they have a choice to do this or not.

“It is important people are left to make a choice. It is obviously bad but it is happening across the world at the moment.”

He added, “The car industry is grinding to a halt and we are facing the same problems as everyone else.

“We just want to get our heads down and get through this.”

A concerned Michelin worker, who asked not to be named, explained that the impending loss of the Italian factory was very much on the minds of the Dundee employees.

He said, “The plant in Turin has closed and we’re next in line because they are our sister plant.

“They (the management) are trying to show France they’re doing all they can to make the plant cost- effective.

“I don’t think it’s as bad as it sounds but we can only do so much—if Michelin want to close the plant then they will close the plant, regardless of what we’re doing in Dundee.”

He believed that some of the Turin production could be shifted to Baldovie, although that has not been confirmed by Michelin.

President of the Dundee and Angus Chamber of Commerce Gary Langlands said the strategy being adopted by the factory was more palatable than redundancies.

He said, “The creative way Michelin have put this proposition to their staff is actually quite commendable because it is not compulsory—the staff are basically being asked for their support in this.

“The challenge the management faces in Dundee is to keep the site as competitively priced as possible and this is another way in that creative sphere of doing that.”