In-house Jobs Go As Clubs Cut Costs
Newcastle Herald
Friday May 5, 2006
ELEVEN jobs would go from Newcastle and Cardiff Panthers clubs as some services were "outsourced", Panthers director and union leader Gary Kennedy said yesterday.
The Newcastle Trades Hall Council secretary said taking on "a joint venture partner" for catering and maintenance at the two clubs was part of a cost-cutting drive across the Panthers group.Mr Kennedy said all club staff had been told of the changes and expressions of interest had been called for redundancies."Most of these jobs going are management, there are very few down on the floor," Mr Kennedy said.He said the club was working with accountants and business adviser PKF to streamline its operations.Both the pay and conditions of the club staff transferring to the caterers and the maintenance and cleaning contractors would be maintained. "If we could have avoided doing this we would have but the Newcastle club has been doing it very hard for a long time," Mr Kennedy said.He said three positions were being created, meaning the net loss of jobs would be eight.There were no plans at either club to outsource other services.He said both clubs were still working on rejuvenation plans, with Cardiff moving to a new club across the road from the old one and Newcastle to develop the unused half of its site and to possibly build a new club where the existing one stood. Ian Kirkwood
© 2006 Newcastle Herald