Healthy future ahead... so reports of our demise are just not true

Mar 27 2008

On March 13 a letter from a former Hewden Stuart employee was published in the Advertiser, ‘Closure represents sad but too-familiar picture’. I write to correct the mistaken view that Hewden is closing its business in Scotland.

My company is absolutely committed to our Hewden Stuart and Finning businesses in Scotland. To this end, we are investing significantly in our Scottish depots and more than 400 employees within via an investment of circa £3.4 million planned in this year alone.

I would like to confirm that the only element of our business being relocated is the administrative centre, which for cost and efficiency reasons will be integrated into a centralised business support centre in Cannock.

This was a tough decision, but we believe it was necessary to ensure our Scottish businesses remain competitive for customers and a secure work environment for the majority of our workforce who work within the depot network.

I stress that we value our Scottish workforce highly and will support affected back office staff with either relocation or employment-finding services.

I have no doubt that the difficult decisions taken today will lead to us being able to create more job opportunities with Hewden and Finning in Scotland in the longer term.

Andy Fraser, managing director, Finning Group UK.