Stagecoach bus firm warns staff of job cuts

A message sent out to employees by CEO Martin Griffiths, which has been seen by the Press, he heaped praise on staff for adjusting during the pandemic.

However, he said that job cuts would be coming, and warned that the company would become “a smaller business”.

He said: “An immediate priority is to reduce our spending. Less passengers means less income to cover the costs of running our services.

“While we have already made significant reductions to our capital expenditure, we also need to reduce our day-to-day operating costs to take account of the new environment.

“We will be looking at areas across the business, including the supply chain and the services we buy in, to achieve cost savings and greater efficiencies.

“A significant part of our costs is the people we employ.

“As you will know, these unprecedented times will force us to reduce the number of roles our business can support.

“A number of our colleagues are at risk of redundancy following a review of our support functions.

“Having to make anyone redundant is always the most difficult decision to make.

“We will, without question support our people through this process, treat them with respect and do it in the right way.

“The action we have taken to reduce the number of roles in some parts of our business is a painful, but necessary step in response to the dramatic reduction in our income.

“And I must be absolutely honest with everyone: changes to the company will continue for the next 12 months at all levels of the business to ensure we have stable foundations and reset for the future.

“The business strategy we put in place before the pandemic emerged remains sound and more important than ever.

“This is to maximise the potential of our core business; using the best of our people and new technology to make our services simpler and easier: and to diversify and grow in the future.

“However. Covid-19 means that the timing and way we deliver on these plans will change.

“ Our success will be determined by many unknown factors. but we will have the best chance of success by accepting the challenge of change head on.

“I remain confident in the longterm future of our company.

“But we need to navigate the short to medium term to ensure that we are part of that future.

“That means we will become a smaller business. We will still be a critical part of our local communities, but how we run our local operations will need to be different and more efficient.”

Councillor Altany Craik, convener of Fife Council’s Economy, Tourism, Strategic Planning & Transportation Committee, said the news was not surprising given the effect of coronavirus on the economy.

“Obviously the impact on public transport has been immense, because not only are they doing social distancing, but people are trying to avoid crowded spaces – buses and trains included, it’s a real problem.

“The worry would be that if Stagecoach has to contract to such a degree that they can’t deliver the service that we expect in order to get people to work or get the kids to school, and to help meet the green agenda.

“It’s a worrying time for their staff, so it’s disappointing if they’re in that kind of place.

“None of us saw this coming, but as one of the biggest companies around, I would hope that they have the resources to survive effectively.”

Stagecoach have so far refused to specify how many jobs are under threat or where the axe will fall.

A spokesperson said: “More than a year ago we started a programme to review our structures and resources to ensure our business is fit for the future

“That work continues as we respond to the challenge of Covid-19 and the changes it is accelerating in how we all live, work and travel.”