FORTY-FIVE workers who were given only 15 minutes' notice about the closure of their Alcester firm, which made theme park trains and transport for Disneyworld, have been awarded at least £90,000.

Severn-Lamb Ltd, of Tything Road, Kinwarton, was making trains for a Disneyworld theme park in Hong Kong.

Disney became so concerned about the completion of the contract they sent representatives to the firm, a Birmingham employment tribunal was told.

"The Disneyworld representatives took over some financial control of the firm but the company ceased trading in December last year and has since gone into liquidation," said Dave Gilfillan, who represented 12 workers at the hearing.

They were seeking awards for breaches of the Trade and Industry regulations.

Mr Gilfillan said the firm should have paid the workers 90 days' notice pending closure.

But he said the workers had been kept in the dark about the firm's financial affairs and intentions and about the Disneyworld intervention.

"The workers were called to a meeting and given only 15 minutes' notice that they were losing their jobs, which was a breach of the regulations," said Mr Gilfillan.

"No one has ever been told why the firm closed."

He added a new firm with the slightly different name of Severn-Lamb UK Ltd had opened on the same site only days after the old firm's closure and dealing with the same products.

The previous firm, which did not attend the hearing, had been in business for about 50 years.

The compensation campaign was led at the hearing by Stuart Watson, who had been operations manager with the previous firm.

Mr Gilfillan said he and Stephen Pagett, who had been production manager with Severn-Lamb Ltd, had now set up a new firm as a rival to Severn-Lamb UK Ltd.

The new firm, near Evesham, was making theme park trains and transport aimed at capturing Disneyworld contacts, said Mr Gilfillan.

Some of the workers who had lost their jobs had joined Mr Watson's firm.

Tribunal chairman John van Gelder accused the management of the former Severn-Lamb firm of showing a blatant disregard for their employees.

"The employees were completely ignorant of what was going on and Trade and Industry regulations were breached over the lack of adequate notice," he said.

Mr Van Gelder awarded all 45 former workers 90 days' award and said most of the money would come from the Department of Trade and Industry.

Mr Gilfillan said afterwards the awards would average at least £2,000 for each former employee - a total of at least £90,000.