Very true, but there is one small problem here. There is nowhere for them to go, irrespective of their skill levels. For the guys on the shop floor, the "traditional" escape route was the UK heavy maintanance market as contractors and subsequently the airlines for those who made the transition.
BAE will be announcing shortly that voluntary redundancies are being called for the whole of the UK BAE sites, at least some of the guys at Woodford who want to carry on will get the chance to.