HP cuts 850 staff in Scotland

Manufacturing jobs to be moved to Czech Republic

Cost cutting at HP hits UK workforce

HP has told 850 workers at its Renfrewshire plant in Scotland that their jobs are to be axed.

The factory has been making storage devices and servers since opening in 1987 as a Compaq plant; the PC supplier was later bought by HP. Now 850 of the 1,300 jobs are to be relocated to the Czech Republic.

“Today’s announcement by HP is yet another devastating blow in a long line of tragedies for UK manufacturing," said John Quigley, Scottish regional secretary at trade union Unite.

HP recently unveiled grim financial results for its quarter ending 30 April 2009, with sales of servers and storage down 28 per cent.

Earlier this month HP said it would cut the size of its global workforce by a further two per cent.

That reduction comes on top of a previously announced plan to reduce headcount by 24,600 and a proposed five per cent pay cut for all staff.

HP said in a statement that it would begin consultations about its proposals in the second half of June 2009.