Helicopter jobs losses 'resisted'

[Ben Erkens]

Compulsory redundancies at a helicopter company which is set to cut jobs will be resisted, a union has said.

Bristow Helicopters said jobs would go due to a decline in demand for its services in the oil and gas industry.

It employs about 500 people in Aberdeen, as well as 100 in Redhill in Surrey and 240 in Norway. Management salaries have also been frozen.

Balpa, which acts for pilots, said suppliers were being squeezed by oil and gas companies.

Jim McAuslan, general secretary of Balpa, told BBC Scotland: "I think the issue that people in Aberdeen need to think about is what the oil and gas companies are doing. They are squeezing suppliers."

He said the knock-on effects would include shops and taxi drivers suffering - and urged politicians to "wake up".

The company said it was consulting with unions on redundancies.

Bristow said it would attempt to "minimise the number of compulsory redundancies".

The company said it was seeing a decline in the demand for its oil and gas helicopter services, mainly in the exploration and development sector, with more limited declines in the production sector.

The number and location of the staff affected will not be known until the completion of the staffing review and the consultation process.