Borough faces jobs cull

Cuts unjust— Meacher

Oldham could be one of the worst-hit areas across Greater Manchester as the predicted 500,000 public-sector job losses bite. One in four local people are employed by the state.

Across the borough there are 18,600 public-sector employees — a total of 24.9 per cent of the entire workforce. Oldham’s reliance on the public sector is only superseded by Bury at 27.65 per cent with 17,200 workers. All other areas across Greater Manchester are less reliant on the sector, which faces massive cuts over the next four years. The figures from the office of National Statistics and the Department for Business Innovation and Skills show that 20.4 per cent of the country is employed by the public sector.

Oldham West and Royton MP Michael Meacher said: “There is no doubt that a cull of public-sector jobs is unjust as it was the bankers that caused this mess not the public sector. It is unnecessary and there are alternatives. What we should be doing is having a public-sector job creation programme not making people redundant.

“Oldham is doubly vulnerably. It is a low-wage area, regionally and nationally, and it has an unusually high percentage of jobs in the public sector.

“Oldham is being victimised for the sin and folly of others and I am very concerned. The levels of these cuts are so unprecedented I am not sure they will all go through but we have to prepare for the worst and everyone must pull together and show their opposition.

“Whether that be politicians in parliament, councils, unions, groups of individuals we must all express our resistance.

“These cuts are unjust and unnecessary and I am extremely worried. This is going to be a very difficult time in 2011 and 2012.”

The North-West relies heavily on the public sector — Copeland in Cumbria is expected to see the biggest loss of jobs with 50 per cent of its entire work force employed by the state.

There is a North-South divide — with only 6.7 per cent of workers in South Buckinghamshire relying on public-sector jobs.