A union has slammed retail giant Marks & Spencer for keeping East Kilbride staff in limbo over their futures.
The flagship Plaza store, which employs 67 workers, was among a number earmarked for closure last June in a bid by the company to turn around its ailing fortunes.
But no date was given for the closure and trade union USDAW – which represents shop workers – say it is “unacceptable” that a year on staff are none the wiser and have accused the company of a “lack of loyalty” to its dedicated staff.
M&S said last summer the store would remain open until the New Year. This was extended to Easter but when the News contacted the retailer this week they said no closure date had been confirmed but they were “keeping staff informed” and they hoped to redeploy as many staff as possible.
The loss of the store – which has been a main stay of the town centre for more than 40 years – would be a massive blow and town centre management say talks to try and persuade the retailer to stay “are continuing”.
However, USDAW say they have been contacted by a number of members who remain on tenterhooks over their future.
Stuart Forrest, the union’s divisional officer for Scotland, said: “There has been prolonged uncertainty for workers for a considerable period of time now and we have been contacted by staff who remained concerned about their future which is simply unacceptable.
“They are effectively being left in limbo and things seem no clearer than they were.
“Initially they were told the store would remain open until New Year and then that became Easter and now we simply don’t know.
“We have members who have worked with M&S for a long time and have shown loyalty – sadly M&S have shown very little loyalty to them.”
He went on: “At local level management have failed to engage with or recognise the union, so we are as much in the dark as everyone else.
“But we will continue to do what we can to fight to keep the store in East Kilbride.
“If M&S were to go it would undoubtedly impact on the town centre as a whole due to a reduction in footfall”.
MSP Linda Fabiani said:“Loyal staff are doing a remarkable job of running the store so well in the face of such uncertainty. The store is still busy every day and town centre management are keen to keep it open. I hope Marks & Spencer are taking note of all of this.”
East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow MP Dr Lisa Cameron said: “Discussions are ongoing to keep our M&S store operational. It is a vital anchor store in EK town centre, our petition demonstrated local strength of feeling against its closure and we must do all we can to retain it”.
A spokeswoman for M&S said: “We remain committed to supporting our colleagues and ensuring they remain updated throughout this process. We will update the community on the East Kilbride store as soon as we are able to.”
