Tata Steel backtracks on plan to scrap 800 jobs

Tata Steel has scrapped its plan to cut 800 jobs, the trade union FNV told NH Nieuws after meeting with the company on Thursday. All employees at risk of layoffs will hear from the company that they’ll remain employed by Tata Steel. Some may have to move to a different job within the company, the union said.

Tata Steel announced in November that it was going to cut 800 office jobs in the human resources, finance, and purchasing departments and outsource a lot of office work. But according to the trade union, that figure didn’t really mean anything as many of the job cuts would concern scrapping open vacancies.

According to FVN, Tata Steel has now promised a different approach. It will still scrap some vacancies, but the company will adhere to the collective bargaining agreement and the employment pact, which guarantees a job for all Tata Steel employees.

Tata Steel will inform all employees in the affected office departments that their employment is safe this week, the union said. However, it is possible that some may be offered another position within their department.

FNV is happy that no Tata Steel workers will end up on the street but is very critical of how the company handled the situation. The company recklessly caused a lot of unrest by dropping a bomb on the work floor, FNV director Cihan Lacin told NH Nieuws. “The damage the company has caused with this plan cannot simply be repaired. There is work to be done for the company to regain the trust of its employees. I advise Tata to work hard on this.”