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Clarks to cut 170 jobs from Somerset and US sites | Clarks to cut 170 jobs from Somerset and US sites |
(about 2 hours later) | |
Shoe manufacturer Clarks is cutting 170 jobs, many of them from the Somerset village where it began. | |
The company said it needed to "address duplication of capabilities and inefficiencies" and become more efficient. | |
More than 1,000 people are employed in Street, many across the distribution centre, and it is understood they were told the news on Wednesday. | |
Clarks' US site in Boston, Massachusetts, will also be affected. | Clarks' US site in Boston, Massachusetts, will also be affected. |
The Western Daily Press newspaper initially reported the planned job losses on Thursday. | |
'Very bad news' | 'Very bad news' |
The firm said the restructure was due to "a highly demanding commercial and economic environment with increasing competition and intensified customer expectations". | |
The statement said: "This reorganisation unfortunately means that we are in conversations with approximately 170 people who will leave our business across our global operations over the coming month." | |
A source close to the company told the BBC the majority of jobs would go in Somerset. | |
James Heappey, Conservative MP for Wells, told the BBC he also understood the majority of job losses would be in Somerset, which was "clearly very bad news for Street". | |
"I think it's going to have quite an impact because that's quite a number of people to be looking for work in a community that's relatively small," he said. | "I think it's going to have quite an impact because that's quite a number of people to be looking for work in a community that's relatively small," he said. |
The BBC understands the trade union Unite is in talks with the company about the job losses. | |
Clarks began work in Street 191 years ago, when brothers James and Cyrus Clark decided to use their tannery to make sheepskin slippers. | Clarks began work in Street 191 years ago, when brothers James and Cyrus Clark decided to use their tannery to make sheepskin slippers. |
The company website says: "Our feet have stayed firmly rooted in Street. It's where Clarks started. It's where our heart lies." | The company website says: "Our feet have stayed firmly rooted in Street. It's where Clarks started. It's where our heart lies." |