A historic Fife technical textiles firm is cutting a fifth of its workforce just months after a £5 million deal took it out of private hands for the first time.
Tayport-based Scott & Fyfe switched to a new employee-ownership structure in September, and the move was hailed as an exciting new era in the company’s near 150-year history.
However, the firm said a variety of trading and product development issues had conspired against it in recent months and confirmed it was cutting 19 jobs from its 100-strong workforce.
Company chairman Nick Kuenssberg said the situation was extremely regrettable but necessary to ensure the business was sustainable going forward.
He said the company had to operate within the financial realities of the modern commercial world and could not behave as a charity, a situation he said the firm had been edging towards.
Individual consultations with staff across the business about the redundancy situation are ongoing.
“We have been holding back and holding back but we have got to the position where we simply had to take a decision, and that is recognised by the shop floor,” he said.
“We keep in touch (with staff) and told everybody what was going on, and everybody knew exactly what the position was.
“I don’t think anybody is surprised, but obviously we are very sorry that we have had to go down this route as we hoped we could avoid it.”
Among the issues the company has faced is a downturn in European trade and a decline in orders from some key long-standing customers.
Mr Kuenssberg also said the time it took to bring new products to market, with development and approval timescales of a year or more, was also a major issue.
Just last month First Minister Alex Salmond visited the company’s base and hailed the potential of a new textile product which is used to irrigate crops in environments where water is scarce.
Mr Kuenssberg said making redundancies amongst a loyal and committed workforce was extremely difficult, but it was in the long-term interests of the company as a whole.
“We are confident and we believe the new products which we are bringing in will enhance our business significantly over the next couple of years,” he said.
“We have been struck by a series of very unfortunate issues but, once we are through all of this, hopefully the wind will change and be in our sails and we will be moving ahead. That is currently what we are planning on.
“We are desolate not just because of the people who will be facing redundancy but also because we are just starting our journey in employee ownership.
“But as we explained to our staff when we went into this, this remains an organisation run in the market economy and we have to do what is right for the company.
“What is right for the company will ultimately be right for the employees.”