| Thorntons — which has offices across the region and in Edinburgh and employs around 360 staff — today confirmed the second round of redundancies and blamed the situation on the global recession.
In a statement released to the Tele, the firm said business had decreased in recent months and now appeared to be stabilising at a lower level than before.
The company said it was therefore imperative to make the extra job losses to safeguard the business.
A number of staff are also continuing to work reduced hours — an arrangement put in place following the initial redundancy announcement in January to offset the number of job losses.
Nick Barclay, Managing Partner at Thorntons, said today, “In common with many businesses facing challenges during the past number of months, we have continued prudently to review how best to service the needs of our clients moving forward while maintaining a strong position for the firm in the coming years.
“Unfortunately we were forced to make redundancies earlier in the year, but with business now settling at lower levels than anticipated, we will very regrettably have to make some further cuts to our workforce.
“This action has been preceded by strong cost control measures as well as careful management and is due solely to the unprecedented market conditions.
“I would like to thank all our staff for their efforts and understanding through what has been an extremely difficult time for everyone at Thorntons.”
The latest job cuts come after a period of rapid growth for the firm since 2000, which had seen the business more than double in size and move to a new head office at Whitehall House in Yeaman Shore. |
