THE reason a Penrhyndeudraeth company boss gave to staff before making them all redundant has been revealed.

In a letter to 70 members of staff at Falconer Electricals Ltd, director Keith Williams, said the company’s ‘financial difficulties’ made it necessary for it to go into Creditors’ Voluntary Liquidation.

Workers were all called to the electrical company’s headquarters on Thursday, 24 January, from all over north and mid Wales, where they were told they were being made redundant and to hand their company van keys in.

One member of staff, who asked not to be named, told the Cambrian News: “It was an absolute shock. We had people working in Aberystwyth and across north Wales. We were told to hand our van keys in. The company provided a bus to Bangor, but people had to make their own way home from there.”

In the letter given to every member of staff, Keith Williams from Bala, who took over running of the company with fellow director, Andrew Etheridge, in 2002, said: “I regret that because of the company’s financial difficulties, it has been necessary for the director to take steps to place the company into Creditors’ Voluntary Liquidation. The company is no longer in a position to make payments to you and you should therefore consider your contract of employment terminated. Claims for arrears of pay, holiday pay, pay in lieu of notice, redundancy pay and any other sums due will be dealt with by the liquidator when appointed. You should register at the local unemployment benefit office as soon as possible.”

Staff members were told to send any claims for payment to Manchester-based company RSM Restructuring Advisory LLP.

See this week’s north editions for the full story, in shops and online on Thursday