Corus cuts 400 jobs as steel demand slides

Steel giant Corus is planning to slash 400 jobs from its distribution business as a result of the economic downturn.

The proposed losses will include 100 in north Wales, 100 in the West Midlands, 50 in south Wales and 50 in Leeds.

According to the company, the distribution business has been working in a volatile and fluctuating market since the beginning of the year. It said: “The impact and continuation of the global economic downturn is having a major effect on steel customers in the construction and plant and machinery markets. Since September, the business has seen a significant decline in demand.

“As a result, Corus Distribution has introduced a series of actions to reduce expenditure on transport, consumables, energy and other discretionary spending. However, these actions alone will not be sufficient to offset the decline in the market.”

Corus will start immediate consultation with its employees to try to achieve the job losses through voluntary redundancy.

The company, which is owned by Tata Steel in India, employs 2,400 workers in its distribution division across 36 sites in the UK and Ireland. The proposed reductions will be spread throughout the business.