The Adventures Of A Uncommon Man

Chapter 9 The Shape Of Things To Come

When I arrived at work, I noticed a gathering of staff on the factory floor. All the packers, order pickers, the warehouse operatives and admin staff from the offices were present. Sat atop a small stage that had been specially erected was Mr Bradshaw himself. He looked like he was dressed in his best suit, a dark one that looked almost like a tuxedo. His skin looked brighter than normal as if he had just slapped on some special lotion to make it glow. He had a microphone in front of him which almost gave me the impression he was going to sing to us, but judging by the management flanking his side and other dark suits that I had never seen before, it seemed apparent there was an important announcement to be made. Everyone was looking up at him, some of the faces clearly looking worried. Everyone was talking amongst themselves quietly, some joking about the fact that Bradshaw was going to fire the lot of us. I saw Josh near the stage and went up to him.
"What's going on?" I asked him.
Josh was dressed rather smartly in a shirt and tie with shiny black trousers and shoes to match. It certainly did not suit his personality as I had been so use to seeing him dress very casually.
"Big announcement," he told me. "You got the list?"
I nodded my head slowly as the crowd began to die down.
"How's your wife?" Josh enquired.
"She came in late. Didn't go clubbing though," I said to Josh. "Shes not going work though. Not too well. Says she's got something to tell me".
I saw a grin form on Josh's face. "You young man, have got to get you crap together. You got less time than you think".
I frowned in confusion to this. There was Josh again, confusing me. I was about to ask him what he meant by this when Mr Bradshaw tapped his microphone to get our attention.
We all looked up as he cleared his throat and began to deliver his message...

"Ladies and Gentlemen. I am sure you are all wondering why I have called you all here," he said looking around him at the gathering crowd of workers. "I won't beat around the bush and just get straight to it".
Office and factory workers all bunched themselves closer together. I could see there was tension and apprehension on their faces. You could practically cut the air with a knife and feel the thickness of what everyone was thinking...The oh god! What have I done now? Or Are we all going to get fired?
None of What's all this about?
"About two weeks ago a deal was established between our company and that of another," continued Bradshaw. "It is a multi million pound deal and it will propel our company into the future. The partnership we have formed is with a cybernetics company called Gkockspiel Ltd. They design automated robots designed for use in the factory's".
There was a few spatterings of talk amongst the workers and looks of disbelief at what they had just heard. Bradshaw seemed to notice this yet remained calm and passive in his demenour.
"Now they are not the kind of robots that look humonoid in shape but more like flat based surface machines with wheels. Their function would be to bring whole rackings of stock to an awaiting factory worker to pack and ship away to our customers. The aim is to reduce the need for people to try and manually find the parts they need in the factory to pack. These machines will do it for us. Quite obviously the shelving and rackings in the factory will need to be modified and new wireless equipment installed in order to automate the factory".
"But what will that mean to us?" asked Vicki.
Bradshaw cleared his throat before replying. "Unfortunately, with this new system being implemented, it will mean that there will be cuts across the workplace over the next coming three years when we phase this system in. The changes will not be immediate. They will happen slowly as we make changes to the system".
There was an uproar of voices from the workers as many of them started talking amongst themselves, horrified by what they had just heard. Some of them were shouting their frustrations at Bradshaw who remained as cool as a cucumber. He did not ask for everyone to be quiet. Instead, he allowed everyone to vent their anger and frustrations before the General Manager told everyone to be quiet.
"Yes, there are going to be redundancies. I won't lie about that and say that your jobs are safe," he told everyone. "The fact is that we are in changing times. In an ever increasingly challenging and competitive economy, it is imperitive for the company's survival that we are able to compete and stay one step ahead of our rivals".
"That's all well and good but what about our jobs!?" shouted one of the office workers. "Some of us have families to support, mortgages and bills to pay!"
"We've worked hard for you!" screamed another.
There was an eruption of shouts as most of the workers anger was now focused on Bradshaw. But despite this, he remained unfazed, his face displaying an unemotional coolness as if he did not care less about what they were thinking.
"I acknowledge your hard work and commitment," he told everyone. "But the fact is that change is coming. The company must move forwards and in the process we must shed jobs. In the coming weeks we will keep you all informed about the coming changes and how the new system will affect your roles, as well as the options you will have, redundacie packages and timescales".
"So what are we going to do?" Vicky asked him.
Bradshaw looked down at her and then at the faces of the workers around him. He seemed to hesitate before replying. "I know this news seems shocking to you all, and I am fully aware of the concerns you have. We all go to work for money because we need it to support our families, pay our bills. But you all need to know that these are changing times. Companies need to move forwards if they are to survive in the war zone that is the economy. Sometimes tough decisions need to made. If you want to remain working here then you need to convince us of what you can offer this company, what you can do to help move this company forwards and make it a winner on the global market. Thank you. You can all go back to your duties now".
Without another word he stepped off the stage and headed off back to his office, flanked by the rest of the company's management staff.
Everyone else began talking amongst themselves again. Some people started heading towards the canteen for a coffee. To be honest, I needed one myself and followed the rest of the herd. Josh followed me to the canteen.
"Lets talk," he said with a hint of seriousness in his voice.