Six diamond polishers, who lost their employment at GemTech due to the latter’s decision to move its business from Antwerp found new jobs in the city – five of them were hired by the best polishing units in the diamond capital and the sixth went self-employed. “Those that had only performed diamond mapping for GemTech will also receive further training as polishers responsible for finishing work,” said The Diamond Loupe, an industry publication initiated by the Antwerp World Diamond Centre, on Friday.
“The diamond polishers affected by the potential collective redundancy at Laurelton Diamonds are still at work while negotiations between management and the manufacturers' union are ongoing. Should the situation effectively result in a collective redundancy, the industry's diamond manufacturing federation says it is cautiously optimistic that many of them will find another job in the Antwerp diamond industry,” the Diamond Loupe says.
Laurelton Diamonds, a Tiffany & Co. diamond cutting arm, intends to close its diamond manufacturing factory in Antwerp, retaining there its head office and diamond sorting unit.
Theodor Lisovoy, Rough&Polished, Moscow