British Steel resumes recruitment

British Steel is planning to hire more than 180 employees, only weeks after the government intervened in order to save 2,700 jobs.

The Chinese owner Jingye had proposed to close two blast furnaces on the site in March due to substantial financial losses. However, in April, ministers intervened to ensure raw materials were delivered to the site to keep the furnaces operational.

Ministers received emergency powers in a rare recall to parliament. They were able to control British Steel, and continue production. On 12 April, the Steel Special Measures Act became law. The redundancies that were planned have been reversed by the end of April.

The company, which is now under the supervision of the government, announced that it will hold a job fair in the coming month to fill 165 positions at the Scunthorpe facility and another 17 at its Teesside Mill and at Skinningrove, north Yorkshire.

The Scunthorpe recruitment day is intended to fill professional and skill positions in the legal, environmental chemistry, and engineering departments, as well in the stores, labouring, and cleaning.

Allan Bell, the British Steel interim chief executive, said: “With the support of the UK Government, we’re focused on cementing British Steel’s position as one of world’s top steel manufacturers.”

In his statement, he added: “To achieve this and to meet customer demand we will increase production across all of our sites.” There are many exciting career opportunities available across our company. These rewarding careers will help us build a stronger business and economy in the UK.

British Steel employs over 3,000 people. The majority are at Scunthorpe where the UK’s only remaining blast furnace produces virgin steel.

The government intervened to save Scunthorpe, not only due to its economic and employment importance in the north of England, but also as an industrial asset of national significance and a key supplier for sectors such as the construction industry and nationalised railways.

A funding plan was developed under Jingye to convert Scunthorpe’s complex into a facility that hosts electric arc furnaces with recycled content instead of blast-furnaces, similar to the arrangement implemented by Tata Steel at Port Talbot in Wales.

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