Ordnance Factory workers end strike, MoD to review 'corporatisation'

Ordnance Factory Board (OFB) workers' unions have called off a strike, launched on August 20, to protest against the Ministry of Defence's (MoD's) decision to 'corporatise' the 41 ordnance factories. The unions have asked OFB employees to re-join work on Monday.

"Corporatising" the OFB involves converting what is currently a department of the MoD that produces tanks, guns and ammunition, into a defence public sector undertaking (DPSU). That would require the OFB to maintain a balance sheet and a profit and loss account, with transparency about inputs, production costs and salaries.

The MoD believes that corporatising the OFB will increase annual turnover