The
Transport & General Workers’ (T&G) union has said that manufacturing in
the UK will end by 2030 unless the Government and employers work with trade
unions to secure a stable future for industry.
The
UK retains a strong manufacturing base employing 3.41 million people, but they
are losing their jobs at a rate of 126,363 jobs a year, said the union.
Tony
Woodley, T&G general secretary, said: "An industrial base that took
200 years to build up has been nearly destroyed in 20 years.
"Government
action must be immediate. Millions of jobs and a balanced economy still depend
on the success of UK manufacturing. As a start, the Government should speed up
the review of public procurement policies."
Unions
will be gathering in Birmingham on Saturday for a rally to ‘Fight Back for
Manufacturing’, bringing together workers and communities who are calling for
an end to the decline of the UK’s manufacturing industry.
