ANOTHER 200 Bolton jobs are to be axed by shopping giant Littlewoods.

Just hours after yesterday's devastating news that 378 jobs will go at the distribution centres on Blackburn Road and Deane Church Lane, Littlewoods confirmed a further 199 job cuts and the shutdown of its Blackrod depot.

The new job losses at Littlewood's prime sort depot include 121 permanent staff and 78 staff on temporary and fixed term contracts.

In a grim week for workers a total of 812 job losses have been announced in the Bolton area since Monday.

As reported in the BEN, jobs are being axed at Star Vale Ltd in Horwich and at three local Coats Viyella factories.

Fifteen workers have also been made redundant at Webster Drives Ltd on Folds Road, Bolton.

The latest jobs blow comes on the day that Tony Blair announced details on the progress of the Government's New Deal for workers scheme. Mr Blair revealed today that about 700 young people have started on the New Deal in Bolton.

Almost 200 are already in jobs and 70 have taken up the full-time education option.

So far 158 local employers have signed up to the scheme. The New Deal has been running nationally since April.

The Prime Minister said: "This is no quick-fix jobs scheme. This is about individual help, matching wasted talents to real jobs and training."

Among the New Deal success stories is 22-year-old Ricky Haslam taken on as a mechanic by B & B Holt, Bolton.

A fightback against the job losses is also underway, with the Bolton Millennium Jobs Challenge. A team comprising the BEN, Bolton Metro, Bury and Bolton Chamber, the Employment Service and Lifetime Careers, aim to create at least one new job per day until the year 2000. Full details are on pages 18-19 tonight.

A Littlewoods spokesman said the logistics operation carried out at Blackrod will transfer to the company's upgraded distribution centre in Shaw.

The Blackrod site will close in 12 months time.

The spokesman added: "Every effort will be made to provide redeployment at the company's return centre in Deane, Bolton, and at Shaw."

Union officials have spoken of "deep regret" at the site closures and job losses.

Usdaw officers have vowed to battle to minimise the number of redundancies.

National officer Val Pugh said: "While we welcome the huge investment in the company's operation at Shaw in Oldham, this will be small comfort for those members who will, for a variety of reasons, be unable to take up the offer of alternative work there."

She added that a "good" redundancy package was being offered by Littlewoods and negotiations would continue.

Despite the huge job cuts, Littlewoods will still be one of Bolton's major employers, with 1,067 employees.

Just under 950 staff are employed at the Croal returns centre in Blackshaw Lane, Deane. About 100 people work at the catalogue distribution and returns centre in Blackrod, although the location of that operation is under review.

Twenty marketing jobs remain at the Dove centre on Deane Church Lane, but their location is also under review.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.