From Strike Threat to Partnership Award (Make or Buy Redundancies in Specialist Engineering)

Background to case study:

  • Almost unanimous vote for a strike in response to Make or Buy process displacing more than 100 jobs to lower cost facilities – strike itself threatened the site’s continuation. The knock-on effect of losing so many highly paid jobs in an area of high unemployment would have devastated local communities, shops and small businesses

  • 10% loss in previous year

  • Lower than 50% OTIF

  • Low trust

  • Outdated and restrictive ways of working

  • 8000 specialist part numbers creating complexity

  • High levels of cynicism that ‘management’ had the genuine will and the capacity to change the situation

  • 4 businesses merged with diverse terms and conditions and working practices and no flexibility between units

  • Major management time opportunity cost in negotiating with 12 negotiating bodies – 3 Unions x 4 Divisions

  • 530 employees

 

Results:

  • Profitability and service levels restored to competitive levels despite significant low-cost competition

  • New Make or Buy transparent and trust-based process agreed by consensus and 90 redundancies were agreed (fewer than originally announced) as an outcome of this process. This built trust through joint problem-solving despite very short timescale and intense pressure

  • This was achieved despite the specialist nature of the skills meaning that components identified to be manufactured away from the site were exactly matched to individual employees with limited scope for ‘bumping’ to avoid compulsory redundancy – thus increasing the difficulties for union reps and reduced scope for retraining in such specialized skills

  • Plant wide flexible ways of working and cellular manufacturing agreed

  • “Simultaneous engagement of employees in the need for change and the change process itself” - HR Director

  • Major shift in employee attitudes recognised by a Department of Trade and Industry Partnership Best Practice award

  • Win-win approach to management/union relationships established as a model for all future issues

  • Reduced footprint by 25%

  • Redeployed the massive management time opportunity cost to value adding activities

·         “Without the engagement process we would not have got the Single Site Agreement which was key to turning around the site” - Operations Director

·         “It pulled the sting out of very difficult negotiations” HR Director

·         “Established the rationale for cell manufacturing for employees” – Operations Director