Great Britain: Vestas and Linamar, two long conflicts, two different outcomes

In mid-July 2009, Vestas announced the closure of its two plants in the Isle of Wight, employing some 600 workers and citing the restrictive nature of planning laws in Britain as having choked off the market for its products. A small number of the workforce occupied the main plant for nineteen days to try to reverse the company’s decision, not only to save their jobs but because they also believed that the market for the wind turbine blades did exist, especially as government policy was to vastly expand the amount of energy generated from this source. The occupiers believed the move was about transferring the production for the British market to another plant outside Britain where labour costs were cheaper.
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In mid-July 2009, Vestas announced the closure of its two plants in the Isle of Wight, employing some 600 workers and citing the restrictive nature of planning laws in Britain as having choked off the market for its products. A small number of the workforce occupied the main plant for nineteen days to try to reverse the company’s decision, not only to save their jobs but because they also believed that the market for the wind turbine blades did exist, especially as government policy was to v

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