A spokesman for the company said that despite the consultation process, it has not been able to agree any viable alternatives to the closure of the site.
“The decision to close the Pinneys site does not mean that collective consultation has ended,” said the spokesman. “We intend to continue to meet with employee representatives on a fortnightly basis to discuss ongoing items, including redeployment opportunities.
‘Individual consultations’
“Simultaneously, we will commence one to one individual consultations with impacted employees in phases and we are committed to working with PACE (Partnership Action for Continuing Employment).
The closure puts the future of 450 jobs at the site at risk. Scottish Secretary and Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale MP David Mundell said it was devastating news for Annan.
Posting on the social networking site Twitter, Mundell said: “Sadly redundancies are now inevitable and imminent. The workforce have shown incredible professionalism throughout and deserve all available support. Priority now is to secure a new buyer to retain production at the site.”
Young’s announced plans to close the site in April, revealing it was to exit deli and meals production at the site as it was no longer financially sustainable.
No longer financially sustainable
The remaining natural salmon production at the site would be moved to its Humberstone Road site in Grimsby, creating a potential 200 jobs. Young’s also said it would offer 50 roles at its scampi production site in Annan.
“We have a long history of seafood production in Annan and, given that we have another factory in the town where we are a significant employer, we are committed to continuing to play a role in the local community,” said the Young’s spokesman.
Meanwhile, dairy processor Arla announced plans to cut 154 jobs as part of a strategic review into operating efficiencies.