Bus manufacturer Alexander Dennis to close shifting all production to England

400 highly-skilled jobs at risk in local communities rocked by economic devastation

Unite the union has reacted with anger today (Wednesday 11 June) after the announcement by bus manufacturer Alexander Dennis to close its Falkirk and Larbert facilities and called-out government ministers for their “inaction and silence”.

Alexander Dennis in a meeting with the workforce this afternoon said it would be moving all manufacturing operations into a single site in Scarborough, England, putting 400 jobs at immediate risk.

The company’s Scottish based manufacturing facility in Falkirk is set to be shut down and the site closed. Production lines at Larbert will also be suspended upon the completion of current contracts. The Scottish based operations represents around 22 per cent of Alexander Dennis’ workforce.

Sharon Graham Unite general secretary said: “The announcement by Alexander Dennis to close its operations at Falkirk and Larbert is devastating. It is the latest huge economic blow to hit local communities on the back of the Grangemouth oil refinery closing.

“Hundreds of highly-skilled jobs are being lost and government ministers are guilty of sitting idly by while people and communities are being ripped apart. They will not be forgiven for their inaction and silence.”

For every job in bus manufacturing, it is estimated that there is a multiplier of three to four jobs in the wider supply chain and support services. The closure announcement on this basis put up to 1,600 jobs at risk in the wider Falkirk and Grangemouth area.

Derek Thomson, Unite Scottish Secretary said; “We are absolutely sick to our stomachs. Workers building the greener buses of the future now have their livelihoods at risk. This will rock the local area which is already reeling from the Grangemouth oil refinery closure.”

“Scotland is on the brink of having zero green manufacturing capacity to speak of.  How on earth will we be able to achieve any of our climate targets if we don’t retain the workers, knowledge and skills needed to deliver this future. Government ministers in Holyrood and Westminster are allowing our nation to be stripped bare of any meaningful industrial base.  “

Unite will be fighting day in and day out to do everything we can to reverse this senseless decision by Alexander Dennis.” 

In 2019, Canadian based New Flyer Industries (NFI) Group acquired Alexander Dennis. The Scottish operation consists of the Camelon manufacturing site and the Larbert corporate headquarters.