Some 86 per cent of workers do not want to leave BT – this was just one of the stark figures to emerge from a survey of staff members carried out at a public meeting on Monday night.

At the meeting, which was attended by more than 120 workers, an anonymous survey was conducted by Alliance Councillor Eddie Roofe to gauge the true thoughts of employees amid looming threats to the Enniskillen contact centre.

In a 24-hour period, more than half the 300 staff responded, with 86 per cent saying they do not want to leave BT.

Meanwhile, 95 per cent believe that a ‘Voluntary Paid Leaver’ (VPL) scheme, which gives employees the chance to leave the company and receive a one-time payout, is designed to “place undue pressure on staff”.

The 25 per cent who have already signed, or are likely to sign the VPL scheme, actually want to leave the company, while 70 per cent “felt pressured” to sign due to a “lack of information” from BT.

Councillor Roofe described the results of the survey as “stark”.

“The survey has made it clear that loyal staff are being hounded out of their jobs through fear and a deliberate absence of information,” claimed the Alliance councillor.

‘Disappointing’ “It is beyond disappointing that a company the size of BT/EE has allowed this to happen to a team of workers who have served them so well.

“The workers continue to have the full support of all elected officials and we, in turn, will continue to push BT/EE to find a solution that allows the facility to remain active in Enniskillen.”

Yesterday (Wednesday), a delegation met with the economy minister, InterTradeIreland and the Communications Workers Union on the need to retain jobs at BT Enniskillen site.

Included on this delegation was Fermanagh and South Tyrone MP, Michelle Gildernew (Sinn Féin).

In a statement following the meeting, she said: “These jobs are vital for the people of Enniskillen and beyond, and they must be retained.

“The site has a very loyal and hardworking workforce which has remained committed to the firm for decades, with very low staff turnover rates.

“Workers, some of whom have worked at the site for more than 30 years, deserve to have clarity and certainty about their future.”