AT ONE time brands such as KitKat and Smarties were as British as the Queen, but sadly, York has taken another major blow to its already flagging economy.

Joseph Rowntree must be turning in his grave to see what the giant Swiss corporation has done to the already depleted and distraught workforce.

It's a slow torture within the factory. What Nestl seems to care about is not the welfare of its beleaguered workforce but rubbing insult into injury by changing our terms and conditions, for example, a reduced redundancy package for those forced to leave and less pay for those remaining.

I saw a representative of the city council speaking on the regional TV news responding to the turmoil the city is in with job losses involving an ever-expanding roll call: Norwich Union, Terry's, British Sugar, Nestl.

He said that York "is a thriving city, buoyant with hi-tech jobs and tourism".

He was backed up with some footage of what looked like university graduates working in a hi-tech laboratory.

I'm sorry but these claims are utterly ridiculous. The majority of the Nestl process workers who regrettably will be forced to back into a corner and take a much-reduced redundancy package than previously allowed are middle-aged like myself. We have given Nestl good service and commitment over the years. We are not fresh from college with degrees.

We will have to fight for what scraps are left on offer in York, and hope we can pay our mortgage and bills. If the city council wishes to help us, I suggest they get real.

Let's find ways of solving the crisis in the city's economy together before it's too late.

To quote a line from a Specials pop song: "This town is coming like a ghost town."

A long-serving Nestl Rowntree employee.