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Wednesday, December 03, 2008, 13:15
Another 26 workers have been axed – nine at Stoke, eight at Newcastle and nine at Worcester.
The historic brand crashed into administration earlier last month and 18 North Staffordshire workers were initially made redundant.
Fifteen jobs were cut at the Church Street factory, and three were made redundant from the firm's distribution centre in Lymedale, Newcastle.
Administrator PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) also made 22 employees redundant at Spode's Worcester-based sister company Royal Worcester.
Garry Oakes, assistant general secretary at ceramic union Unity, said: "We were so optimistic that things were moving forward with the sale of the company that this has come as a shock. We just don't know what's happening anymore, and the remaining workforce must wonder what's going on.
"They don't seem to be getting any information because of the confidential way administrators do business."
No-one from PWC was available to comment on the latest job cuts. PWC has been trying to bring cash in by clearing stocks, as well as setting up talks in a bid to sell Spode as a going concern.
A PWC statement said: "PricewaterhouseCoopers can confirm that having reviewed the retail operations of the business, they have identified 16 sites which will be run as sales clearance stores with immediate effect. The affected sites are the stores located in Bridgend and Castleford, and the retail concessions located in Peterborough, Birmingham, Worcester, Northampton, Edinburgh, Cardiff, Solihull, Wolverhampton, Shiremoor, Lakenheath, Bedford, Dundee, Ilford and Newcastle upon Tyne.
"The administrators are continuing to work with the staff at Royal Worcester and Spode, and with key customers and suppliers, to continue trading while numerous expressions of interest in the business are explored further."
A spokesman for PWC added: "It would be true to say we are in detailed discussions with more than one party interested in buying the company."
Before the redundancies, there were 62 people working at Lymedale and 90 at Stoke.
News of its problems casts into doubt the future of a firm which has manufactured in Stoke for more than 240 years.
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