Drivers in night picket at Antrim depot

Lorry drivers at failed Co Antrim haulage company Reid Transport were back on the picket line tonight demanding wages owed to…

Lorry drivers at failed Co Antrim haulage company Reid Transport were back on the picket line tonight demanding wages owed to them.

A total of 200 jobs are to be lost at the Cloughmills haulage firm which went into administration on Wednesday.

Tonight around 30 workers were protesting outside the plant.

Warehouse operator Neil Adams said: "I am on the picket line tonight because I would like to try and get some sort of Christmas.

READ MORE

Throughout today there was uncertainty about the terms of their redundancy. "There are no guarantees for anybody. There have been politicians here making promises but there are no guarantees," Sinn Féin MLA Daithi McKay said.

Economy Minister Nigel Dodds and Employment Minister Sir Reg Empey have said help will be given to the 200 workers who have been made redundant.

Sir Reg said the local jobs and benefits office was already working to help the redundant workers and his officials would be meeting the company on Monday to discuss redundancy payments. First Minister the Rev Ian Paisley has also expressed his concerns.

Demonstrators are angry at the way they were thrown out of work without warning, just weeks after being assured their jobs were safe. Last month they received letters from the company describing concerns over the firm's future as "unfounded" and "malicious rumours".