THE 320 employees at Unipart's condemned north Oxford factory are being offered the chance to apply for 45 jobs being created by the car-parts group in Cowley, writes Maggie Hartford.

Warehousing and logistics company Unipart DCM is creating the new full-time jobs, but many are likely to go to existing employees on temporary contracts.

Unipart spokesperson Tamsin Johnston said: "We will be offering the jobs across the group, so they will be offered to Oxford Automotive Components staff as well.

"It is dependent on the person and the job that they are applying for."

When Unipart announced that the Woodstock Road plant would close by 2001, the company said it would offer jobs to all employees at its other factories, which are in Coventry and Kent as well as Oxford.

The 45 new jobs at Cowley have been created by the growth in the contract with Japanese carmaker Daihatsu, announced last October, and the addition of a new vehicle to the London Taxis International contract. The market for Truck and Trailer Components is also expanding and the Unipart International range is growing. Managing director of Unipart DCM, Mike Pybus, said: "Over the past few years Unipart DCM has been diversifying, through new contracts, to ensure a strong long-term presence in the logistics market.

"Many of these contracts are now established and beginning to grow and we are confident of their future. This has meant the need to take on more employees.

"Obviously we are keen to give our existing employees the opportunity to take up these positions, particularly those who have been working on existing temporary contracts with the company and have already demonstrated their commitment to Unipart. However, should there be a shortfall, we will, of course recruit externally."

The Cowley warehouse will get 35 new full-time posts and another ten will be based in Unipart DCM's headquarters off Garsington Road.

Since May the company has been developing some of its existing contracts in the automotive industry such as Daihatsu, Volkswagen, and Jaguar, and the IT sector, as well as looking at new business development.

Unipart DCM says until now it has not had the capacity to follow up all opportunities, but now it is pursuing them more vigorously, which is beginning to pay off.

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