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B&T 'liquidated within two weeks' says Dolan as protests continue

William Mitting, PrintWeek, 08 May 2008

Colour book printer Butler and Tanner will be liquidated within 14 days, according to chief executive Mike Dolan, who also confirmed he was expecting offers from "several equipment purchasers" this week.

Dolan’s comments come after a week of protests by the former staff at the Butler and Tanner site in Frome, Somerset. The protests culminated in a march through Frome last Friday (2 May).

Stuart North, senior representative for Unite at Butler and Tanner, said: “I had informed the local police that approximately 300 people would be demonstrating because we gave less than 48 hours notice, but we had nearly double that.”

Away from the protests, the dispute between Dolan and Unite raged on. Last week, Unite accused MPI, parent company of B&T, of hiring agency workers in place of the sacked staff, in order to keep the business operational.

Dolan told PrintWeek the rumours were untrue and added that there was “no chance of keeping the business open in the near future, or at all”.

He also moved to quash rumours that a buyer had been found for the business and said that MPI was not in discussions with any potential acquirers.

Unite also held a meeting with 250 workers last week where it pledged to take every step to retrieve the outstanding wages and pension contributions, amounting to a total of more than £400,000 according to Unite, owed to the former employees.
Butler and Tanner was bought out of administration by MPI in August 2007. While MPI has said the business was profitable up to December, changes to the working practices were needed to sustain profitability.

Unite found the proposed changes unacceptable and its members at the firm voted in favour of strike action.

Dolan has said that action by the unions and its members led to the decision to close the company. However, the union blames Dolan for ramping up the dispute prior to the closure, which has put 287 staff out of work.

Comments

Colin Thompson - 08 May 2008

Why do we need to go this far in the 21st century.

"Mediation - and Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) more generally - is much more interactive than litigation. It enables the parties to participate to a greater degree in exposing and resolving the issues at stake. They have a sense of ownership of the resolutions they agree which they do not have for court imposed solutions. That is why it can be so much more satisfactory for the parties involved"

What we do is:

Provide a mediator ( `an independent professional`) or co-mediators for the parties in dispute from our list having regard to the nature of the dispute, the location of the parties and all other relevant surrounding circumstances.

Negotiate the fee for the mediation with the parties in dispute.

Organise the mediation. This includes preparing a pre-mediation agreement, booking a venue, liaising between the parties and the mediator and generally taking responsibility for the smooth running of the day(s).

So, appoint a professional and it will be successful.

Colin Thompson

Cavendish

www.cavendish-mr.org.uk

The Mighty wind - 08 May 2008

"Mediation - and Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) "

I think if you read Allen Kerr's posting on an earlier related forum you will understand why there would never be a happy ending here

Clive Keeble - 08 May 2008

"according to chief executive Mike Dolan, who also confirmed he was expecting offers from "several equipment purchasers" this week."

Reading this latest report I can't help feeling that Mike Dolan is determined to destroy B&T, and at the same time not act in an ethical manner (fair to all parties) by immediately appointing an insolvency practitioner to administer Butler and Tanner Printers Ltd Company No 06331779 to ensure an orderly exit of MPI.

Who the heck would want to purchase B&T when the carcass has been pre-picked ??

I also feel that the town council and local district would be well advised to make public their feelings, and presumed policy, about the necessity for the B&T works site to remain as industrial and not to be developed (in the immediate future) as a brown-field site for housing.

Hiopefully Whitehall is watching the situation.