FACTORY bosses are axing about 300 jobs from its production line.
Unipres has told all of its 200 temporary workers they are no longer needed, and are looking to make 96 full-time staff redundant.
The company makes car parts for Nissan, and its factory is next to the Japanese car maker at Washington.
A spokes
man for the company, which has been trading since 1999, said the global downturn and lack of people buying new cars had hit hard.
He added: "We're affected pretty much the same as everyone else.
"We are expecting a significant downturn in sales and are having to adjust our manpower accordingly.
"Unfortunately, that is what we need to do to survive."
Staff say this is the worst time of year to be told your job is at risk, with thousands more people every week joining the dole queue.
Union Unite is representing staff in talks over redundancy packages.
Consultation started on December 22 and a first meeting is expected to take place next week.
The firm is looking for voluntary redundancies, but may have to make some compulsory if volunteers are not found.
The spokesman added: "We have communicated the situation to our employees on several occasions and they are aware of the situation."
Brian Cole, from Unite, said the first cuts will be on January 31, and the company is looking to make the last redundancy by April 30.
Temporary staff were informed just before Christmas they would not be needed in the New Year.
Mr Cole said the reduced workload at Nissan had affected the plant, based on Cherry Blossom Way.
One disgruntled worker, who did not want to be named, said: "Full-time staff were told 96 of us are going.
"It's very worrying. If they do not get the volunteers, they're going to make compulsory redundancies."
Nissan finished production five days earlier than expected over Christmas on December 9. Work resumed yesterday.
