The Putaruru closure, scheduled for March, comes on the back of a review that concluded it would be uneconomic to keep the plant open. The review was conducted in consultation with staff and their representatives, Fairfax NZ says.

Fairfax has recently acquired and is installing additional press equipment at the Waikato Times and will increase the number of employees on that site to fully utilise the additional capacity. These opportunities will be available to Putaruru employees.

The press enhancements at the Waikato Times will provide access to greater colour and paging capacity for the Fairfax New Zealand group.

Fairfax NZ Chief Executive Officer Brian Evans said the company was committed to investing in improvement of its printing presses and that investment would provide far greater opportunities for Waikato region employees and the company if it was located at Hamilton.

“While we are sad the Putaruru plant has to close, we are delighted that we are able to provide more employment opportunities in reasonable proximity and an increasingly exciting future at the Waikato Times site.”

Fairfax NZ said on a separate matter that no contamination had been identified at the Putaruru site. The company had involved OSH and other regulatory organisations and had completed an extensive environmental investigation into some unpleasant odours reported on the site by staff. The results of the investigation have not revealed any source of the odour or any evidence of work-related hazards affecting staff.

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