Call for government to honour Rolls-Royce contracts to save jobs

The West of England mayor is calling on the defence secretary to honour two contracts with Rolls-Royce in a bid to save Bristol-based jobs.

Staff at the engineering giant’s Filton site face uncertainty amid plans to cut up to 2,500 roles globally and Dan Norris says the security of the workforce relies, at least in part, on continuation of work on the Tempest and Eurofighter Typhoon aircrafts.

The metro mayor has written to defence secretary Grant Shapps asking him to confirm government contracts awarded to Rolls-Royce will be guaranteed, arguing the potential job losses are “deeply concerning” for the region and Filton workforce.

He has also urged the firm to “avoid compulsory redundancies at all costs” following the announcement of plans to streamline the organisation by cutting jobs.

Some of Rolls-Royce’s 3,400-strong Bristol workforce are carrying out tests on the UK’s next-generation supersonic stealth combat aircraft, Tempest, while others are providing maintenance support for the EJ200 engine on the RAF’s fighter jet, Typhoon. Both projects are said to be key to securing jobs in the city.

Dan Norris is calling on the defence secretary to honour two contracts with Rolls-Royce in a bid to save Bristol-based jobs – photo: West of England Combined Authority

Norris wrote to the defence secretary: “Following a call with Rolls-Royce, I gather that the security of the workforce at Bristol depends in part on the government’s commitment to continuing with these contracts and not ending or curtailing them.

“Therefore, I am calling on you and your department to guarantee the government’s spending commitment to the Tempest and Eurofighter Typhoon contracts, which will help to save British jobs in my region.”

The mayor added: “The news from Rolls-Royce is deeply concerning for the 3,400 West of England-based staff.

“I urge them to avoid compulsory redundancies at all costs and to focus on excellence over short-term savings.

“We are known as a key base for world-class engineering and the company has a big economic and social impact on the greater Bristol region.”

Rolls-Royce bosses have said the proposed new structure will “create a more agile business that is better able to serve customers and build enhanced capabilities in key areas such as procurement and supply chain management”.

Announcing plans on October 17, chief executive Tufan Erginbilgic said: “We are building a Rolls-Royce that is fit for the future. That means a more streamlined and efficient organisation that will deliver for our customers, partners and shareholders.

“Our business is full of committed, talented people and I believe these changes will enable them to build greater capability in areas that are key to our long-term success. This is another step on our multi-year transformation journey to build a high performing, competitive, resilient and growing Rolls-Royce.”

Rolls-Royce bosses have not indicated where job cuts will fall and said they need to engage with unions before making further announcements.

Main photo: Rolls-Royce

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