270 jobs blow hits Padiham

The financial services provider will shut its office at the Shuttleworth Mead business park making 113 people redundant and transferring 158 roles to its Skipton head office.

The news was broken to workers following consultation with HML’s union SURGE. The changes will be phased between June and September when the site will fully close.

The closure is the culmination of a number of uncertain months for HML. The Burnley Express reported in March that 20 compulsory redundancies and 38 voluntary cuts were to be made at Padiham. It escaped major cuts last August when seven voluntary redundancies were made.

Bosses said the job cuts were being made to use spare capacity at its other sites and reduce fixed costs.

HML chief commercial and finance officer Mr Neil Warman said: “The Padiham site is operating under capacity and we have spare capacity in our Skipton office. It makes sense for us to significantly reduce our fixed costs and get the best value out of our remaining sites.

“The majority of roles will transfer to Skipton but there will also, regrettably, be a number of redundancies. We understand the personal impact on employees, however, we must make tough decisions that are in the long-term best interest of the majority of our employees.”

Owned by Skipton Building Society, the company also has offices in Londonderry and Glasgow. HML will help people to relocate by supporting them with additional travel costs and being flexible with start and finish times.

The company said employees will be offered support including on-site job search facilities and access to Vielife, a professional employee assistance programme.

Brian McDaid, General Secretary of the SURGE union, said: “This news will come as a severe blow to our members at this site even though the majority of roles will transfer to Skipton.

“Our priority is with our members in Padiham and the town of Padiham, coming as it does at a time of high unemployment.

“It is very disappointing to see so many of our members lose their jobs through no fault of their own and we must also remember the wider implications of this for their families.”