Timber firm announces redundancies at Boat of Garten sawmill
A well know timber company has announced it is laying off up to 22 staff in the strath because of tough trading conditions in the sector.
BSW employees at its Drumullie sawmill by Boat of Garten are understood to have been informed about the redundancies on Monday afternoon.
Most of the work is to be transferred to another of the group’s sites in a move to save money.
BSW Group Operations Director Mike Lomas said: “Our sawmill at Boat of Garten is currently enduring very difficult trading conditions which have come about as a result of a downturn in sales activity.
“We are proposing to restructure timber production at our mill there and transfer the majority of the development mill operations to another BSW site.
“This will help to more economically convert production, consequently improving the financial figures at BSW, Boat of Garten.
“This may result in potentially reducing the headcount by up to 22 people across the site, most of whom will be by reason of redundancy.
“We have now entered a group consultation period with employee representatives which will then be followed by detailed consultations with affected individuals.
“We have called for volunteers to leave with redundancy pay before any compulsory redundancies are finalised.”
BSW Timber Group employs more than 1,000 staff across seven sawmills in Britain. Current global economics along with other factors has been blamed for the job losses although Brexit was not singled out.
A company spokeswoman said: “During the past year there has been a combination of market forces including an influx of imported timber and general uncertainty in the economy which have reduced the demand for timber across the UK.”
There are understood to be around 62 staff at Drumullie. It is thought there will not be enough voluntary redundancies to avoid compulsory lay-offs.
Fergus Ewing, Inverness and Nairn MSP and Rural Economy Secretary, has pledged that the Scottish Government will do all it can to help affected workers.
The Strathspey site reprocesses logs from Scottish forests to convert into timber for construction, fencing, pallets and landscaping.
More reaction to this announcement in today's Strathy
