A MAJOR employer is expected to quit a market town as part of a national shake-up.

BT has revealed plans to close its Northallerton depot as an option under consideration to streamline its operations.

The company said it was aiming to avoid compulsory redundancies, with the 180 staff at the Darlington Road centre being offered the chance to move elsewhere, retrain or accept a voluntary pay-off.

But proposals to close the depot - one of Northallerton's largest private employers - have alarmed staff, who will be meeting union leaders today.

Steve Catterall, national executive member of the Communication Workers Union, said they would be aiming to set out the position to staff on the depot's future.

They would also be meeting council officials to discuss possible future use of the site, and job prospects in the town.

He said: "The company's strategy is to rationalise their warehousing and distribution and the news for the people of Northallerton may not be very good.

"We want to talk to our members to let them know roughly where we're up to in the negotiations with the company."

Options under consideration by the company were reducing the number of staff but keeping the depot open, closing the depot altogether or out-sourcing it to another company.

He said: "We would like it to remain open but as far as the company is concerned if they do keep it open it will be rationalised. Everything is still under discussion and as far as we are concerned everything is still up for grabs."

A BT spokesman said the future of the depot had been in doubt since the company opened a centre at Lutterworth, in Leicestershire.

The depot stores cables, telephones and other equipment which can be dispatched all over the country.

He said: "The future of Northallerton is tied in with a reassessment of BT's distribution system and it is more effective to have one centralised depot rather than smaller ones dotted around the country.

"My understanding is there will be no enforced redundancies. Staff could be offered jobs at other centres, offered retraining to work in other parts of BT or take voluntary redundancy.