The initial plea is for volunteers to take redundancy, with a warning that compulsory redundancies could follow if there are not enough offers. But the battle is now on to find an alternative - and that includes a possible two-week shut-down of the fans department.

Mr Jon Brough, works convener of union Unite, said: "There are 37 proposed redundancies. This is on top of the 31 from earlier this year. A 90-day consultation will take place."

Mr Brough said the union was working to try to find an alternative to losing the jobs, with a number of ideas under discussion with Rolls-Royce management.

He explained: "A potential temporary closure for a couple of weeks is being looked at. It would mean they shut down and not pay us for a couple of weeks, meaning jobs would be retained."

The union is pressing for an agreement that, if the company closes the plant for a fortnight, workers are paid for one week of the two.

Mr Brough said the jobs under threat only involved the fans business, and was workshop personnel rather than staff or management. It would help Rolls-Royce meet its global proposal to lose 1,500 to 2,000 jobs.
He added: "We are looking at an option with BAE at Warton - a potential jobshare. They are currently increasing their workforce and it could mean a temporary move to Warton for some of the workforce."