Yard workers face 'uncertainty'

Harland & Wolff lay-offs a blow to east Belfast

Workers in Belfast's Harland & Wolff shipyard are facing a period of uncertainty after the announcement that about half the workforce was to be laid off.

Thursday's news that 613 workers were to be laid off was described as devastating by workers.

"It is a very sad day. Morale is pretty low and everyone is feeling low about the situation," one employee told the BBC.

Billy Murray, who worked in the yard for decades before his retirement, remembered the days when there were 10,000 working at the shipyard.

"Now it's just barren. It will hit lads with mortgages, fellows with new cars, hp (hire purchase)."

My future's down the drain, there's nothing going to come back into Belfast Port

H&W worker

Newtownards Road shop manager David Neill said the shipyard workers were very good customers and the latest announcement would have an "obvious adverse impact".

"We've already noticed from the first cuts a decline in business and this will, no doubt, add further to that.

"A large amount of the workforce is drawn from the immediate area and certainly it doesn't bode well for the area."

In the nearby H&W Welders' Club, the mood was one of despondency, some anger and resignation.

A worker who preferred not to be named said: "My future's down the drain, there's nothing going to come back into Belfast Port," he said.

Another retired worker was more optimistic, citing the long history of shipbuilding on the Queen's Island.

"That place will never close down; 1850, it's too long there, said Jimmy Galbraith, a retired welder.

At a news conference after the lay-offs announcement, First Minister David Trimble and Deputy First Minister Seamus Mallon disclosed the formation of a task force to investigate employment opportunities for those who would lose their jobs.

President of the Confederation of Shipbuilding and Engineering Unions, Bobby Carson, said the announcement was a "devastating blow" to workers across the company, from its management down.

Union representative Bobby Carson: Remaining confident

Mr Carson said the union feared there would be further redundancies if new orders could not be won.

"Despite the bad news we remain confident that something will come up."

H&W was recently awarded £22m in an arbitration dispute with the American oil exploration company Global Marine, which had refused to pay the final instalment for one of the drill ships, which it said had not been completed to its satisfaction.

Earlier this year, the yard narrowly failed to win a £400m order to build the Queen Mary II cruise liner, which would have secured its future.