JOBS are set to be lost at a Colchester building firm in the run-up to Christmas.

Employees at RG Carter, on the Grange Way industrial estate, were told at an emergency staff meeting that up to 15 jobs could go.

The administration and support staff facing redundancy are among approximately 100 workers employed by the firm in Colchester.

One worker, who did not want to be named, said: “With this amount of money involved, they could have carried the redundancies through to after Christmas, rather than spoiling Christmas as well for these people.”

Another worker said he was unhappy about the redundancies, but said: “It’s not the company’s fault. The recession has been tough and it’s always slow this time of year.”

The family-run construction group employs 1,500 people at 14 companies across the east of England and posted a £6.63million profit after tax in 2008.

The firm is helping to build the world’s first zero carbon Tesco Superstore in Peterborough.

It has previously worked on the swimming pool at Clarice House Health Spa, in Colchester.

The Gazette has made repeated attempts to contact bosses at the firm, leaving several messages since Thursday.

Managers were in meetings and unavailable to comment when the Gazette contacted the Colchester office and the group’s head office in Drayton, near Norwich, yesterday.