THE next Scottish government has been urged to investigate whether it could establish a publicly owned bus company at a site where more than 100 jobs have been axed.
It comes as bus manufacturer Alexander Dennis announced last month that 115 jobs at its Falkirk base are at risk of being cut, despite a government rescue bid.
The calls were made in an emergency motion at the Scottish Trades Union Congress (STUC) annual congress in Dundee on Tuesday, where hundreds of members from Scotland's largest trade union body have gathered this week.
The motion, proposed by Unite the union, expressed "unequivocal solidarity" with Alexander Dennis workers and demanded "immediate government intervention to halt redundancies and secure long-term manufacturing".
It also calls upon "the Scottish government to investigate the potential to take control of the sites and establish a publicly owned Scottish bus company".
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Alexander Dennis announced last year that 400 jobs were at risk, but a multi-million furlough scheme was agreed with the Scottish Government in September to help protect roles.
However, the company has said that up to 115 roles would be placed at risk of potential redundancy with a consultation being announced.
At the STUC congress, delegates expressed solidarity with the workers placed at risk, with First Minister John Swinney set to meet those impacted ahead of a speech on Tuesday afternoon.
Addressing congress, Unite's Susan Fitzgerald warned the job losses at the site represent a "death by 1000 cuts",
"There are no other companies sitting waiting in the wings, no one else is building buses in Scotland. It means the skills are lost, and the industrial capacity is lost," she said.
Fitzgerald's speech was met with a round of applause from delegates.
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The motion also agreed that the STUC would campaign for "binding" procurement rules that would prioritise the retention and expansion of Scottish jobs, along with domestic production.
It adds: "The loss of these jobs will devastate local communities, with every manufacturing job supporting up to four further jobs in the wider supply chain.
"These cuts are part of a wider pattern of industrial vandalism across central Scotland, where workers are paying the price for political failure and weak or non-existent industrial strategy."
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