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Vestas workers occupy: 'A fight for jobs and the planet'

Workers occupy the Vestas wind turbine plant on the Isle of Wight against bosses’ plans to close it<span class='black'> (Pic: Jake Smith)</span>

Workers occupy the Vestas wind turbine plant on the Isle of Wight against bosses’ plans to close it (Pic: Jake Smith)

Workers at Vestas, the UK’s only wind turbine manufacturer, occupied their factory in Newport, Isle of Wight on Monday evening against plans to close it. Dave is one of the occupying workers. He spoke to Socialist Worker on Tuesday.

‘We’ve occupied our factory to save our jobs – and to save the planet. Six hundred people work here. That many jobs going will have a devastating effect.

But there’s even more to it than that. We need renewable energy if we’re going to stop global warming. When the government says it wants green energy and green jobs, it’s criminal that it’s closing Vestas.

I’ve worked here for a year and a half but some people have worked here for eight or nine years. We had a meeting on Monday where we talked about what to do.

We decided we were going to go for it. People thought, “It’s now or never”. We went in as two teams, from both sides of the factory. All of the doors were locked – apart from the front door!

We’ve taken over the offices. This is the control base of Vestas on the Isle of Wight and across the south. There are 30 of us in here.

The managers are threatening not to give us any redundancy money at all. They say the payroll is in here and they can’t get to it.

But we’re not going to be intimidated. We can see everyone demonstrating outside. There are about 100 to 150 out there now, which is great. We’ve had messages of support from workers at Visteon and Prisme. Workers from the factory opposite and other factories around here have come over too.

Support messages are coming in from all over the world. We’re really grateful for them all. And if you can get to the Isle of Wight, that’d be even better.’

The following should be read alongside this article:

Vestas occupation is part of struggle for the future

Profits come first for bosses

Ford-Visteon workers back the fight for justice

Workers’ action can save the planet

How you can help the Vestas occupation

Don't let them starve Vestas occupiers out

Supporters of Vestas workers get food to the occupation

Solidarity and the siege of Vestas

Protest at the Department of Energy and Climate Change

Vestas occupation still going strong

Photos of Vestas occupation