Coronavirus: Putting the boot into protective clothing as RM Williams to shut factory

Bushwear icon RM Williams is seeking to convert Adelaide factory to produce protective medical gear.

‘We see this (shut-down) as temporary,’ says RM Williams chief executive Raju Vuppalapati. Picture: John Feder

Australian bootmaker RM Williams is holding talks with the South Australian government to retool its Adelaide workshop so it can produce protective medical equipment in a bid to help fight the COVID-19 outbreak.

The move came as the iconic brand was forced to shut its plant and stand down more than 300 workers after closing its retail network around the world. All up, 700 RM Williams workers in shops, offices and warehouses, around the world have lost jobs.

Yet chief executive Raju Vuppa­lapati is hopeful the South Australian government will take up his offer to tap into the capacity of the RM Williams workshop and the skills of the workforce.

“We can do masks, we can do gowns, we can do anything that’s not technical that requires certain certification from the health ministry,” he said. “We’re one of the few companies that have those capabilities in Adelaide.”

The closure of the factory in Salisbury, in Adelaide’s north, on Wednesday follows RM Williams shutting retail outlets around the world at the weekend.

Mr Vuppalapati said it was sad to see the global shuttering of the more than 72 shops, particularly after investing to put in another production line and 100 more staff in December 2019.

All 709 staff at the company who have been stood down will be offered two weeks’ salary as well as a payout of accrued annual leave, leaving them to join the almost one million Australians who have lost jobs since COVID-19 caused the Australian economy to grind to a halt in recent weeks.

RM Williams plans to revisit its decision to close the workshop in the last week of April, by which time Mr Vuppalapati said he hoped a decision might be reached on what to do next.

“My ambition is to be sure I have the same team when we come out of it,” he said.

“We see this as temporary. I’m approaching this through a lens of saying we want our team to be part of the solution.”

South Australian Trade and Investment Minister David Ridgeway confirmed his government had been approached by RM Williams in an offer to produce medical essentials.

Mr Vuppalapati said teams at the business have already registered for the federal government’s JobKeeper program, which he hopes will tide them over

He said drought, bushfires and now a viral pandemic were proving tough for the business.

“At this moment of unprecedented uncertainty, it is hard to see past the headlines and understand what lies ahead,” he said.