A NUMBER of redundancies have been confirmed at airline seat manufacturers Safran Seats in Cwmbran.

The company has been consulting with staff since April, when the French-owned firm proposed cutting 187 jobs at its Cwmbran site.

It has been reported that 155 jobs have been lost at the Cwmbran factory.

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A Unite spokesman confirmed there had been redundancies at the factory, and the union were assisting those affected.

Safran Seats employed around 1,200 employees at its Cwmbran and Camberley sites, and a spokeswoman for the firm said in April that it expected 30 per cent of staff to be made redundant.

And in May, the company confirmed it still meant to go ahead with the job losses despite the introduction of the UK Government's job retention scheme.

“The [furlough] scheme in its current form is due to finish at the end of July. We are aware that whilst the scheme may be extended it is increasingly clear that it will take years for the aerospace industry to recover from the impact of the coronavirus crisis,” said a spokeswoman at the time.

“We have therefore had to take steps now to protect the longer-term existence of Safran Seats GB, with its head office in Cwmbran, South Wales.”

Torfaen's representatives, Lynne Neagle MS and Nick Thomas-Symonds MP had met with bosses at the manufacturer after the announcement that redundancies would be made back in April.

“This is clearly an awful time for the families of those who have been made redundant,” they said in a joint statement after Thursday's announcement. “Our thoughts are with them at this very tough time.

“We are very disappointed that these job losses have happened, particularly as the furlough scheme was designed to protect jobs in this situation.

“We will continue to work with Torfaen Council and the Unite Union to save local jobs, and also continue to make the case for the vital sector-specific support for the aviation sector that is so desperately needed.”

Safran Seats have been contacted for comment.