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70 jobs axed at Promise Finance
Saturday 19th April 2008, 11:46AM BST.
Around 70 jobs have been axed from a Black Country loans and mortgages company which has gone into administration, it has emerged today.
Promise Finance, based on the former Goodyear site in Stafford Road, Wolverhampton, claimed closing was “the only sensible course of action” because of falling trade from the economic slowdown.
Other parts of the group, including master brokerage Promise Solutions, remain unaffected, said the firm.
Staff at the company, due to be paid next week, have been told they will not be receiving their money.
They were called to a meeting yesterday when they were given the news.
Employee Steve Hodges, of Sandmere Rise, Bushbury, who worked in the call centre, found out he had lost his job by telephone.
He said: “Things were looking good for the firm, as we were told regularly more business was coming in. But I suspected the credit crunch would impact eventually.”
The company is the main sponsor of Promise Dreams, the Wolverhampton-based charity which supports seriously-ill youngsters.
Group managing director Steve Walker said: “The decision to close this part of the business was extremely tough but the current market conditions have dictated this as the only sensible course of action.
“We will remain in the secured loans sector focusing on a quality service provided by some of the best people.
“Strategically the steps we have taken, while regretful, make sense for the long-term stability of the remaining jobs and give us a sound platform from which to grow.”
Mr Walker added a significant number of those who had lost their jobs would be re-employed elsewhere within the group.
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house prices crashing- bills rising- now comes redundancies and job losses we are heading for RECCESSION!
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Does this mean the former Goodyear offices will become vacant again? And what about the present employees there, will they be offered alternative employment elsewhere in the company or destined for the scrapheap as usual?
As for the charity, willthey also be victims of the ‘credit-crunch’? Too many questions and no answers!!!
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have they told everyone now to or is there more people to find out that they are in the dole line come monday?????????????
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i was at work yesterday and got a call at 6pm to tell me i had lost my job the directors must have known this was going to happen and still let us carry on working knowing that they where not going to pay our wages!!!!! PROMISE does not keep its Promises!!!!!!!!!!!
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labour goverment, which idiots voted for them
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I now celebrate job losses in the UK. Bring on 3 million unemployed! Bring on hardship! Bring on higher petrol prices! Bring on high electriciy, gas and food bills!
This country and its economy needs smashing up. We need to return to a sensible economy with sensible house prices, where young people have an opportunity to live a reasonable life.
If you see a banker – spit on them!! If you see an estate agent – spit on them too!!
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no.7 muppetout the idiots who voted for labour are the ones who got fed up of the thatcher years,remember HIGH INFLATION,HIGH INTEREST RATES, HIGH DOLE QUEUES AND OH YES HOUSE PRICES CRASHING WITHBANKS MAKING A FORTUNE IN REPOSESSING.the peasants revolted..
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sorry to all the good people that lost there jobs, but the people that were in charge of the tenp staff treated us like cattle and they should have been sacked years ago. i worked there last summer and i could tell something was wrong why could’nt the directors.
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i was at work yesterday too, i’m still waiting for my call……… if i don’t THE call do i go to work and play stupid???!!!!!!!!
i can’t belive that we have been shafted this bad this must have been coming for a while
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All politicial parties are similar – now just remember who started the ball rolling – Tories!!
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Even up until the end they were asking staff to come in for overtime today (Saturday) Knowing what was going to happen!! it’s a joke! We were all given overtime for the last 2 weeks and are now not going get paid anything. It’s not like they woke up on Friday morning and realised this had to happen. Yet it took until 8pm for some staff to find out!! Promise Family!I think not!…..
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Have you listened to yourselves, really??? This decision was not one that was made lightly. You think that putting 70 people out a job is an easy task? And as for directors looking after number one – take a look around! See the bigger picture- i can tell you one thing for sure the directors are losing out on a hell of a lot more than some 15k job a year – for godsake look at what really has happened…
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Isn’t it a good thing that these finance firms who charge excessive interest rates to poeple who can’t afford it are going bust ?????
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GOT A CALL AT 8PM SAYING I HAD LOST MY JOB, THE NEWS HAD ALL READY BEEN FILTERED BUT OT CONFIRMED.
IT WAS UNBELIEVABLE HEARING ‘THE STATEMENT OF ADMINISTRATION’ OVER THE PHONE SO SEEING THE HEADLINE IN YESTERDAYS E&S.
I LIKE OTHERS HAVE BILLS TO PAY, I FEEL FOR THOSE WITH MORTGAGES AND FAMILY’S TO SUPPORT.
GOOD LUCK AND GOD BLESS
GOIN TO MISS ALL YOU ‘EX-WORKERS’
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Shafted??? How were they supposed to prevent this? What with people only ever interested in the nights out than the actuall income they are meant to be generating it’s no wonder they went into administration!! Too many people are too quick off the mark to place the blame elsewhere when surely they should try looking closer to home first! You lot make me sick with these pathetic comments – try living in the real world for a change – WAKE UP!
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I read the news and I see how many other companies in this industry have been affected by this. Unfortunately the credit crunch is the reason why this happened and it is unfair to blame people. Promise were a decent company who did care for their staff whatever others may stay. I wish them well for the future and hope they give me a call when times turn for the better.
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Everyone reacts to news like this in different and it’s natural people feel angry. However I believe the Directors did all that they could to keep the company going. They too have lost more than anyone realises and “all 6 Directors” referred to above are not “all comfortable”.
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Obviously a terrible time for those that have lost their jobs and my thoughts to go out to everyone affected by this. Please remember that this is a privately owned company not some faceless corporation. They haven’t taken the money and run like some other companies have done over the past months, they have continued to try and work through a difficult period hoping that more jobs could be saved.
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At the end of the day when having to reach a decision to make people redundant its down to survival of the fittest. anyone can brown nose but you actually have to be good at your job too. Its a really crap thing that has happened but this decision wasn’t taken lightly its a major headline that will potentially effect the future of Promise. I am sorry of all the losses but the right attitude and dedication obviously counts when a list of employees to be made redundant has to happen
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Different people react in different ways and it’s understandable that some are angry. However, the Directors did all that they could to save the company. The person who described “all 6 Directors” being “comfortable” does not know how far from the truth that is.
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As a former employee of Promise, I consider myself very lucky to have left when I did. I do however feel saddened and quite disgusted at the manner in which my former colleagues and friends were cast aside in order to implement ‘the only sensible course of action’. For those of you affected I sincerely hope you all find new employment soon, and with a company which is unlikely to treat you in such an appalling manner. Whether or not this was the best thing for the future of Promise is not really an issue, not when 70 hard working, loyal members of staff have been sent home and this morning will have to sign on in order to have any source of income. This company supposedly had values and standards of high service. For those of you who remain at Promise, I hope you have the good sense to leave before you are treated the same. We were once a team, ‘a family’ someone once said. You don’t treat family like this, you certainly don’t treat you own friends and colleagues like this. I wonder how some of the directors/ team leaders can now wake up in the morning and not feel a little embarrassed & ashamed..? I am proud to have worked with you and I’m sorry you were treated like this. I wish you all success in whatever career you may go into.
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70 people made redundant? I think you’ll find its more then that!
And when do we expect to hear if we will be ‘re-employed elsewhere within the group’?
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I’m really annoyed by comment 19! I know that in all the time I worked there I didn’t use my money to go clubbing, hey I barely had enough to cover bills, and i know many other member of staff that were exactly the same. I was there to give GOOD QUALITY SERVICE TO CUSTOMERS and that is what I did. We are awake and living in the real world, the reason we are so annoyed is because money is owed to us that we have put our time and efforts in earning, we all gave 110% at all times and in the occasion we didn’t we’d be pulled up on it! I know I’m not the only one who can’t afford the house hold bills this month. We now have to sign on whilst we wait for interview and new employment and hope our landlords/mortgage providers understand our predicament, but as we have all work behind the scenes in finance, we know its possible they wont give us a break! why do you wake up and see the severity of what has happened to so many HARD WORKING PEOPLE! good luck in the future to all Promise guys! Sorry we didn’t even have chance to say goodbye! You will all be missed!
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hey this is life but this company was always a joke from there bonus structures to the way they thought that people working below them could be spoken to as if they were children. o all those guys i had the privilage of working with ill miss you all i wish you every sucess in every thing you do i hope we can all meet up one day with good news all round till then
love all ways a friend(Promise)
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Number 19 your comments pathetic….
The problem is ex-Promise people ARE in the real world and ARE waking up to the reality that they no longer have a job or any income. These people are now going to have to worry about paying the mortgage or supporting there children.
Yes, theres no way of the placing the blame with a situation like this, but how dare you attempt to slag peoples comments off for being angry! What the hell do you expect?
And yes i did noticed that the Porsches/BMW’s/Range Rovers are still there.
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Nice work all you in charge of Promise Finance admin.!!!! One does not have to be supremely inteligent to see when the crunch is coming and I suppose that would be round about the time the name on top of the wage slips changed? Whilst I was not employed by you (Thank goodness) a member of my family was and is now in bits…. Thanks
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To number 19———
When you live in the REAL world you have to go to work do your job pay your bills buy food
HOW DO YOU DO THIS WITH NO JOB??????????????
I think for those of us now who are pulling our hair out and trying to figure out how we pay the bills and put food on the table are far more in the real world than the ones who still live in the promise bubble (i just hope for you that, that bubble doesn’t burst over night and on a grape vine like our has.)
But thanks Promise for teaching me never to take anything for granted and that even if you work for your money you have no guarantee that you’ll get it on payday…………………..
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