Herdman's announce 270 redundancies

Herdman's linen textiles mill in Sion Mills in Co Tyrone has announced that 270 workers are to be made redundant on the closure of the plant.

The news of the impending redundancies was broken to employees earlier this week.

A spokesperson said that the redundancies were the result of unsustainable financial losses over the past three years.

The textiles market has been severely affected by low-cost imports, but it is understood that Herdman's plan to maintain a manufacturing facilty in South Africa.

The factory built in 1835, which currently employs around 270 people in Sion Mills, has operated variously as a munitions manufacturer, but had operated as a linen mill in recent years.

West Tyrone Sinn Féin MP Pat Doherty, said the jobs loss in Sion Mills was comparable to an "economic earthquake" hitting Strabane District.

Mr Doherty said: "Given the magnitude of these job losses and the devastating impact on the livelihoods of so many people in this area, the closure of Herdmans is comparable to an economic earthquake hitting the District.

“Herdmans has been the lifeblood of this community for over 150 years with generations of the majority of families in Sion dependent on the Mill."

West Tyrone Ulster Unionist MLA and Strabane Councillor Derek Hussey described the Herdman's Mill closure as "devastating".

Mr. Hussey said: "The announcement by Herdman's of its decision to transfer their manufacturing operation to South Africa is devastating news for the 270 employees, for their families and to the wider community.

"This is a black day for the local economy yet it is another, all too familiar example of the fate of the textile industry in Northern Ireland which is now in irreversible and terminal decline.

"There has been an inevitable and worrying impetus within the local textile industry towards 'outsourcing' and relocation of the manufacturing element of their operations."

In one of the largest recent jobs losses, Desmonds closed down two Northern Ireland manufacturing factories with the loss of 300 jobs

It is estimated that the impact of the closure of the textile factories has removed several million pounds from the local economy in recent months.

(SP)