180 jobs in jeopardy at Shepherd Construction

Staff at York-headquartered Shepherd Construction are set for a significant round of cuts as directors are arranging to restructure the business.

As reported in theEnquirer, up to 180 jobs are in peril, with most of the cuts coming from the back-office staff.

Employees found out about the impending redundancies just last week, and a redundancy consultation exercise is currently underway.

Shepherd Construction revealed its latest accounts exceeded an £8.2m loss last year on turnover down a third to £240m.

However, the company’s Shepherd Engineering Services did manage to make a £5.3m profit from turnover up 8% at £208m.

These two main Shepherd contracting arms employed nearly 1,400 staff.

Industry leading construction firm Wates was enquiring about potential takeover of Shepherd Construction, Shepherd Engineering Services and Shepherd FM just last month.

Mark Perkins, Shepherd’s CEO, said: “The executive board is currently reviewing the Shepherd Construction business, with a view to establishing the right scale and platform for future growth and sustainability.

“As part of the review, a formal 45 day collective consultation process with employees within Shepherd Construction and the divisional support teams commenced on 1st April, to assess current resources.

“We must ensure that Shepherd Construction operates as efficiently as possible to meet the demands of today’s market and safeguard the long term future of the company and its workforce.

“We will do everything possible to minimise potential redundancies and prioritise the welfare of staff affected by the consultation throughout.