Vestas to cut working week at two Colorado plants - report

Dec 12, 2012 - Danish wind turbine maker Vestas Wind Systems A/S (CPH:VWS) will reduce the working week of all hourly employees at its plants in Windsor and Brighton, in the US state of Colorado, to 32 hours from 40 hours, Denver Post reported.

The company informed the employees about the decision on Monday. The move is aimed at avoiding job cuts, the newspaper said on the same day, citing a statement from Vestas.

The move comes after the Colorado Department of Labour and Employment approved Vestas's work-share programme. The employees will be compensated for their lost wages by the state's unemployment fund for up to 18 weeks.

The Danish wind turbine maker currently has some 1,100 production employees in Colorado but it did not wish to disclose the number to be impacted by the change, Denver Post said.

During the autumn Vestas has been downsizing its operations in the USA ahead of expected low activity in 2013. The federal production tax credit (PTC) subsidy scheme is due to expire at the end of this year and so far efforts to secure continued state support for wind power projects have so far stranded.

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