Britivic Called To Halt Closure Of Norwich Site

GMB and Unite the Union have written to the Independent directors of Britvic and copied to the company calling on them to meet community and workforce representatives and halt the proposed closure of the Norwich site.

The Unions want the Independent Directors to hear first hand from workers and the community their concerns for jobs in their community and the local economy.

Robinsons has been produced in Norwich for 92 years and is worth £38M in goodwill to Britvic and - along with Colemans - is synonymous with Norwich.

The Unions have raised a number of concerns about the consultation process, many of which remain unanswered, and have asked for them to be raised in Parliament as well.

The letter has been sent to Ian McHoul, Senior Independent Director and Independent non-executive directors Sue Clark, Ben Gordon and Euan Sutherland.

Ivan Mercer, GMB Regional Organiser, said: "The Company need to pause, reflect and listen to the concerns of the workers and local community.

"Thousands of people have signed petitions to keep Robinsons in Norwich and this cannot just be ignored. Questions have been raised by the local MP, Council and in Parliament.

"There is a strong feeling that this process is being rushed, and that there has not been any meaningful consultation with the workforce or their Consultative Group.

"The Company have admitted to withholding from the Consultative Group a key report into the site operations. They have also taken more than 4 weeks just to share critical financial information with the Consultative Group.

"Members at the factory are concerned that there are a number of conflicting answers to simple questions, and they fear the consultation will be closed the Friday before the Company Annual Results are released on the Monday.

"The Unions are amazed that Britvic are prepared to throw away the legacy of Robinsons to save, at best, 1% of their annual turnover, before taking into account the likely loss of goodwill assets."