Taken from 'North Tonight'...............what a difference a week makes! OK, so it wasn't 100 jobs (yet) but still the CEO and bean counters sure can work quick to make a decision when they want to.
22/10/2003 17:01
An Aberdeen based helicopter firm has denied reports that a hundred jobs could go following a downturn in North Sea operations.
Bristows Helicopters say its carrying out an ongoing review of resources but no decision has been taken.
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ALSO From 'North Tonight'
22/10/2003 17:07
Helicopter operations at Aberdeen have declined dramatically and last month saw figures down by almost twelve percent on the previous year.
It's thought unless there's a major turnaround in fortunes jobs across the helicopter sector will go.
Reports quoting an unnamed Amicus union spokesman have claimed that a hundred jobs could go at Bristows if they fail to keep their contract with Shell.
The firm say they are conducting a review of operations which is ongoing and no decision has yet been taken on jobs. Bristows say the contract is not up for renewal until two thousand and five and have branded the claims as scaremongering.
Amicus say they are mystified as to who the so called spokesman is. They say there have been assurances by the firm that there are no immediate plans to downsize.
It's believed the firm have seventeen aircraft lying idle, eight of them in Aberdeen. Industry commentators say the situation is the worse its been in thirty years.
Scotia helicopters are also reviewing their European operations to see if they can cut down on duplication to reduce costs.
Bond Offshore Helicopters are due to begin operating out of Dyce in the summer after winning a contract for all of BPs offshore flights from Aberdeen. But there are fears there is simply not enough work for three firms.
Bristows say the prospect of another competitor is "not helpful" in the diminishing market.
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Another sad day for the industry, let down by the management and the 'earners' are first to take the bullet. So much for 'Leading from the Front' more like 'Lead in the back'