Bremworth proposes laying off 47 staff amidst major restructure

Wool carpet maker Bremworth is proposing laying off 47 staff, citing a "challenging economic climate".

Workers at Bremworth could be facing cuts to 47 staff - including 20 in Whanganui - under a new proposal being considered by the wool carpet business.

A proposal seen by the Whanganui Chronicle that was presented to staff on March 13 aims to reduce the overall headcount of Bremworth’s workers by 47 staff - from 285 to 238 staff.

Of the 47 cuts being proposed at Bremworth, 13 are salaried positions in New Zealand and Australia, and 34 are waged positions based in the manufacturing and warehouse facilities.

At the Whanganui plant, 20 staff would be cut under the new proposal, with the entire night shift - 17 staff - being removed.

Anyone at any level of the company was invited to seek voluntary redundancy under the new proposal.

Bremworth CEO Greg Smith said it had entered a consultation process with staff on a series of measures “designed to align their cost base with the current scale of operations”.

“In response to the challenging economic climate and the current recessionary environment, Bremworth initiated a proposal to safeguard near-term results and reinforce the company’s long-term future.”

Bremworth chief executive officer Greg Smith.

A Whanganui Bremworth worker, who wished to remain anonymous, said staff were delivered the news at a meeting on March 13, with the job cuts coming as a shock.

“It was very quiet ... a lot of people were crying, some [staff] have been there for years and years.”

In documents seen by the Chronicle, a decision about the proposal was set to be made by March 25.

However, a change in the board of directors at Bremworth has now meant this will be extended to April 1.

The business faced an attempted board coup in early March by shareholders.

But a smooth transition resulted in a new board being instated this week with former Silver Fern Farms chairman Rob Hewitt at the helm.

Smith said it made sense to extend the consultation period to ensure the new board was fully across the proposed changes, and that it was able to consider feedback from the team and advisers before any significant changes were made.

“We realise this is an unsettling time for everyone and unfortunately prolongs the period of uncertainty and for this reason have been actively communicating with those potentially impacted,” he said.

Workers First Union organiser Kaye Hearfield said staff were facing a lot of stress and anxiety not knowing what the potential outcome of their livelihood was.

“From the workers' point of view this is out of their control right now, they’re not the decision makers, but they might unfortunately become the collateral damage should this go ahead,” Hearfield said.

“They’re skilled workers and loyal workers ... it’s sad times.”

She said it was positive the timeline had been extended as the proposal might be reconsidered to reduce the number of job losses.

Just two years ago, in 2023, Bremworth’s Whanganui plant faced a different outlook, with the company looking to increase production in Whanganui by 30%.

At the time, Smith told the Chronicle that he was looking to “super-charge the production” in Whanganui.

Under the new proposal, if it is accepted, the Whanganui plant will instead be moving from three shifts to two shifts and the entire night shift will be removed.

In February this year, Bremworth reached a final multimillion-dollar settlement with its insurers over the damage to its Napier plant caused by Cyclone Gabrielle.

Hearfield said Bremworth workers were awaiting further decisions: “We just have to watch it play out.”

Eva de Jong is a reporter for the Whanganui Chronicle covering health stories and general news. She began as a reporter in 2023.