Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

‘Devastating’ blow to Dundee as Michelin plans to close Dundee factory ‘by 2020’

The Michelin site in Dundee.
The Michelin site in Dundee.

Michelin plans to close its factory in Dundee by 2020.

The news, first revealed by The Courier, has now been confirmed by the French firm.

Some 850 people work at the plant in Baldovie Road and a number have been summoned to a meeting on Tuesday morning.

The Michelin factory at Baldovie.

The planned closure is a devastating blow for the city, with Michelin one of the biggest private employers in Dundee.

A source told The Courier: “Both governments have been alerted. There are 850 workers at the Dundee factory and the plan is to close it in or by 2020.”

A statement released on the Michelin website on Monday, quickly removed, claims the plant on Baldovie Road is “unsuitable and its conversion is not financially viable”.

Politicians have been reacting to the news.

Richard Leonard, the Scottish Labour leader, said: “This is devastating news for the Michelin workforce and their families, the city of Dundee and the wider Tayside community. My thoughts are with them.

“The Michelin factory in Dundee has provided not just hundreds of well paid jobs, but much needed skills and training to a city which has suffered greatly as a result of de-industrialisation.”

UPDATE: Michelin confirms plans to close Dundee tyre factory, with loss of 850 jobs

Bill Bowman, the Scottish Conservative MSP, said it will come as a “hammer blow to hundreds of employees and their families”.

“There will also be a much wider effect among thousands of people across Tayside and Fife.

“I support immediate action to engage the workforce and find them work.”

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie said: “This is a huge blow for Dundee. The Scottish Government must liaise with unions and the firm to work out whether anything can be done.

“We need a government exploring every option to ensure that vital experience is not lost.”


>> Keep up to date with the latest news with The Courier newsletter


Unite union Scottish Secretary Pat Rafferty said: “Unite has been aware of the challenging market situation facing the Michelin Group.

“This has been primarily due to the cheap foreign imports from Asia and as a result falling demand for premium tyres in smaller dimensions, which the Dundee factory specialises in producing.

“If the media reports are confirmed by Michelin, this will be hammer blow for Dundee.

“It would be devastating and a betrayal of the workforce who have made major changes to working practices at the site in order to secure its long-term future.

“The workforce can be assured Unite will fight tooth and nail to save our factory. We will leave no stone unturned to keep this factory open.

“Unite will work day and night to ensure that all options remain on the table.”

The tyre manufacturer warned in September that jobs could be lost at the plant amid “extremely challenging trading conditions”.

For full coverage and reaction, see Tuesday’s Courier