Isle of Wight News on Ventnor Blog

It’s full steam ahead at the IW Steam railway where rising visitors have prompted a doubling of the locomotive fleet and the appointment of a new, full-time Engineering Manager.

The railway is facing ‘a great opportunity and a challenge’ explained General Manager Peter Vail, thanks to the ‘extremely generous’ gift of seven new locomotives, four from the Ivatt Trust and three from the national army museum.

It is this, along with the rise in demand that has prompted the introduction of the new post.

(more…)

News reaches us that a planned strike by the Public and Commercial Services Union next Monday and Tuesday may affect Coastguard Stations around the UK.

We understand that it is not the rescuers themselves but those responsible for co-ordinating rescues who are planning the action.

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency tell us that contingency arrangements are in place to provide emergency services, but warn sea users to take extra care whilst on the sea, beach or cliffs.

(more…)

According to the BBC, over 200 people made their way to the recruitment fair at Norton Grange Coastal Village in Yarmouth yesterday in the hope of finding work.

The holiday park has undergone a massive refurbishment and have around 100 new jobs on offer.

Best of luck to everyone who applied.

via BBC

What’s the best thing to do when you’ve proposed £11.6m worth of cuts, causing gales of protest, particularly from those responsible for looking after the most vulnerable members of society?

Make sure you’re not spending extra money? Drop your expenditure where you can?

Isle of Wight council have taken a different approach. (more…)

The number of unemployed claimants on the Isle of Wight rose by 268 to 3,833 in January 2010.

This represents a rate of 6.5% of the economically active population, the 226th highest of the 646 UK constituencies.

The number of claimants is 678 higher than in January 2009 and 268 higher than in December 2009.

The number of unemployed claimants on the Isle of Wight went up 154 in December 2009. That’s 6.1% of what’s officially called “the economically active population,” bringing it in as the 234th highest of the UK’s 646 constituencies.

Measuring year on year, there are 1,023 more than in December 2008.

We heard today that the staff at the Isle of Wight tax processing office at St Cross Business, Newport will be made redundant.

The announcement went out today to the back office staff informing them that they will lose their jobs some time between now and 2011.

A £3.5m funding boost at Vestas Blades has been reported on IW Radio this morning, the money set to feed into research for offshore wind turbines.

Readers will remember that Vestas received £6million funding earlier in the year from SEEDA and the DECC.

Back in July, it was reported that the new facility in Stag Lane would create around 250 jobs, but we hear today that this figure has now increased to 400.

US lacking orders
Meanwhile over in the US, 500 staff have been given a temporary leave of absence due to lack of orders at the Windsor, Colorado plant.

Read more on that.

Image: M.Prinke under CC BY-SA 2.0

Yesterday morning, we made our way to County Hall to talk with workers taking part in industrial action.

The IW Council want to remove a car allowance that is paid to council workers who have to use their cars to carry out their work for the council.

Those affected include staff in children services; social workers; planning department; highways; occupational therapy and education.

(more…)

A total of 53 staff will leave Red Funnel as part of the restructuring which was announced last month.

Red Funnel tell us that 36 members of staff have opted for voluntary redundancy.

(more…)

As readers will remember, back in October Red Funnel announced that 50 jobs may be lost through cut backs at the ferry firm.

An anonymous source close to Red Funnel has been in contact to say that staff will be having one-to-one meetings over the next two days with managers at Red Funnel.

(more…)

Unemployment on the Island increased again this month according to today’s official figures.

There are 3,234 unemployed claimants on the Isle of Wight, which is 32 more than in September 2009, gaining 1,462 since October 2008.

That equates to 5.5% of the Island’s economically active population, placing us at the 297th place of the UK’s 646 constituencies.

News reaches us that Consultant Rheumatologist and Post Graduate Clinical Tutor at St Mary’s Hospital, Dr Mark Pugh, will be taking up the role of NHS Medical Director next month.

Dr Pugh who has worked at St Mary’s since 2002 and lives on the Island with his family, will work as part of the Executive management team for NHS Isle of Wight.

Dr Pugh said: “I am delighted to be appointed as Medical Director. This position is a long held aim of mine and I look forward to the challenges this new post will bring. I still plan to play a lead role in the provision of rheumatology on the Island but am also hoping to further develop consultant support here.”

(more…)

It’ll be no surprise to hear that there’s a strike by some postal workers today.

As mentioned earlier on VB, there wasn’t any action on the Island yesterday, but today there has been

We went down to the picket line in Newport today to chat to them and find out what’s behind the strike action, how the media is reporting the it and what may happen with other strikes.

(more…)

As you’ll be well aware, there is a national postal workers strike across Britain today, but the Island won’t be directly affected.

Early this morning we called the Communication Workers Union (CWU), who represent the postal workers, to find out which parts of the Island would be seeing strikes.

(more…)

During a Ventnor Town Council meeting held behind closed doors on Monday night, the future of the Winter Gardens Concession was discussed and short term action agreed upon.

As a result of the sudden and unexpected resignation of Graham Perks as concessionaire, the Ventnor Town Council have agreed to step in to protect the jobs of those who would have lost their positions at the Winter Gardens’ Bell Bar.

(more…)

In less than two weeks time, 22 former Vestas workers will be starting a new course at Southampton City College.

The workers are among others who are signed up for a brand new course in aluminium welding, which is the first of its kind in the Solent region.

Apparently, there is a massive shortage of skilled aluminium welders in the south coast’s boat building industry, so future prospects for the pupils could be good.

(more…)

Red Funnel are entering into a consultation about the future of up to fifty job losses under a structural review.

The thirty day consultation period has started with affected staff coming from both the able seamen and shore-side operations.

(more…)

The official unemployment figures for the Island were released this morning.

The number of people claiming unemployment on the Wight appears to have doubled in a year.

August 2009 saw 3,196 on the Island signing on for unemployment benefit – that’s 5.4% of what they call the “economically active population.” In August the previous year (2008) there were 1,539, a difference of 1,657.

(more…)

Rowan sent VB this article on the night of the full council meeting.

–Ed

On Wednesday evening the Isle of Wight’s elected councillors did a fine thing. They put aside ya-boo politics, moved beyond simplistic ideology on all sides, and unanimously voted for a motion that showed more than just sympathy for the Vestas workers.

Councillor Geoff Lumley had circulated his proposed motion before the meeting started. But by the time he got to the meeting he had already amended it, putting aside his own political commitment to public ownership, because he knew that other councillors would probably not feel able to support such a motion for ideological reasons.

(more…)

One feature of the Vestas sit-in has been the ingenuity of those inside and outside to overcome difficulties that being separated by private security, the police and a fence can bring.

An example of thinking around a problem is the use of tennis balls to transfer things in and out of the sit-in.

(more…)

Caroline Lucas, the Isle of Wight’s Green Euro-MP has formulated what she feels is a possible solution to the current crisis at the Vestas Blade factory.

The head of the Green party on the Island, Brian Lucas, is to deliver a proposal to David Pugh to turn the Vestas Blades factory into Workers Co-operative.

Sustainable Communities Act 2007
Under the Sustainable Communities Act 2007, councils and communities have the opportunity to put forward proposals on sustainable improvements to local economic, environmental and social wellbeing.

Once established, individual councils’ proposals are sent to the Government via the Local Government Association. The deadline for current submissions to the LGA is 31st July 2009.

(more…)

Simon is sending back updates from the Council chamber. Keep refreshing your page for updates.

Public questions
Q: Mrs Wareham – What has the council done to retain jobs at Vestas, given the big impact?

Cllr Brown – I’ve submitted a report to council, with a full page on Vestas. Will be in debate later.

Q: Mr Wortham – leader has warned of lean times, how does this balance with large outputs.

Doubling the cost of business case to £7.5m.

Cllr Giles – PFI is my case. IWC will get nearly £1Bn, so the £7.5m isn’t much. Papers are two months early. Let’s not get side tracked into negativity. We will get money from the gov we’d never have.

Mr Wortham – £7.6m is a lot of money, that other councils have had to spend.

(more…)

Cllr Geoff Lumley is tabling a question at today’s Full Council meeting, forcing the council’s elected member to address the loss of jobs at Vestas.

In the light of the devastating loss of 600+ jobs at the local Vestas plant, the IW Council supports the view of the Island’s MP that “it is important that public money is invested in businesses that are firmly rooted in local economies” and till work pro-actively to make that aspiration a reality in the future.

in the meantime and in the face of the current Vestas situation, the IW Council will exert whatever pressure it can to get the Government to facilitate moving the Vestas plant into alternative ownership as a way of not only saving the 600+ local jobs, but also of promoting its own policies to expand renewable energy sources, including wind power.

Could be an interesting discussion. It’s open to the public and starts at 6pm at County Hall.

Staff at JobCentre Plus have been in touch with VB asking us to pass on their number to those who will be losing their jobs at the end of the week.

They had been based up at the Vestas site in Newport offering advice to those faced with redundancy, but since the sit-in have relocated back to their offices.

If you work for Vestas and need to make a claim for benefit or if you want to talk to an adviser about training or jobs please contact Newport Jobcentre Plus on 273003.