VR Group planning shut-down of Turku depot

VR Group is launching co-determination talks at the Turku depot on December 9. According to initial plans, the operations of the depot would come to an end next year, and its work would be moved to other units of VR Maintenance.

The co-determination talks apply to the entire personnel of the Turku depot, 72 employees, as well as maintenance personnel using the premises of the depot as their work space. A total of 80 people are included in the scope of the negotiations. If initial plans are carried out and the Turku depot is shut down, its entire personnel will be offered new jobs either in other maintenance units or elsewhere in the VR Group.

The negotiations are prompted by economic reasons, as well as production, and the reorganisation of operations. VR Maintenance is to concentrate work on larger units near the main traffic flows.

“Good work has been done at the Turku depot in the development of operations, but its location is not optimum for the development of the network. Discussions in the negotiations will involve where the work can be done most sensibly”, says Jari Hankala, Senior Vice President for Maintenance.

Concentrating the operations would improve cost-effectiveness, as the work could be situated in such a way that it would support the efficient use of rolling stock. Concentrating the production of spare parts is also expected to boost efficiency. In addition, VR Group could relinquish its depot space in Turku, which would reduce fixed costs. Initial estimates put annual savings at a total of several million euros.

The Maintenance unit of VR Group has depots in Helsinki, Turku, Tampere, Kouvola, Joensuu and Oulu. It also has machine shops in Hyvinkää and Pieksämäki. The unit also includes the technology unit, which offers its expertise services. A total of about 1,300 people work in rolling stock maintenance.