Security firm Protection Unit to close operations in Luxembourg, impacting 250 staff

Security firm Protection Unit will cease its activities in Luxembourg, the firm has announced to staff union representatives on Wednesday, labour union LCGB has said.

The Belgian firm, which employs 3,000 people, of which more than 250 work in Luxembourg, told staff representatives that “the aim of this cessation is part of a judicial reorganisation procedure through a transfer of business,” the LCGB said in a statement.

Protection Unit defended its decision in a press release on Wednesday afternoon. “Despite the numerous efforts of the teams in place, the profitability of the activities carried out in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg has never been achieved,” the company said.

“The impact of Covid, the widespread rise in costs, and the recent bankruptcy of Caritas Luxembourg, one of the largest clients of Protection Unit Luxembourg, are all factors that have ultimately convinced Protection UNIT Group that the unfavourable market conditions in Luxembourg do not offer prospects for improvement in the medium term,” it continued, adding that it would “honour existing contracts” with both companies and staff.

Protection Unit, which has been operational in the Grand Duchy since 2021, signed a contract to provide security at the airport in Findel in July of last year.  

The labour union has requested an urgent meeting with the company’s management to clarify the circumstances of the firm’s decision to cease activities, and said it “will also ensure that the legal and contractual framework is strictly followed regarding the transfer of the business, while ensuring that there is no detrimental impact on the affected employees, particularly regarding the payment of their wages.”

The LCGB said it will also work towards preserving the jobs and working conditions of existing staff.

More job losses

Meanwhile, a year after introducing a social plan, manufacturing company FB Groupe announced its intention to lay off at least 15 more staff, as the Luxemburger Wort reported on Wednesday.

In a press statement released by the labour union OBGL, the company, which manufactures floor slabs for the construction industry, said the deterioration of its economic situation was pushing it to cut more jobs.

The company, founded over 40 years ago, was acquired by the Belgian Willy-Naessens Group in early 2022.

According to OGBL, it was agreed that the Willy-Naessens Group would offer employment contracts to at least three staff affected by the social plan “with retention of seniority and without a probation period in a newly established construction company in Luxembourg belonging to the group.”

Nevertheless, at least 15 employees are expected to be laid off. Each laid-off employee will receive a severance payment, capped at €12,000, the union said.

The Willy-Naessens Group has assured the unions that the restructuring will not affect the contracts of the remaining 30 employees, OGBL said.

Meanwhile, more than 300 jobs are set to be lost at a traditional furniture group based across the border in Saarbrücken.

Möbel Martin plans to cut over 20% of its total workforce of 1,600, with jobs in both logistics and sales to be impacted, the Luxemburger Wort reported.