"Gratifying number of inquiries" about voluntary redundancy have been received by Summit Wool Spinners Ltd as it grapples with a lack of orders that may force it to cut jobs.
Employees had until Wednesday to express an interest and the Otago Daily Times understands the company may have received about 40 inquiries - about half of the worst-case scenario of possible job losses.
Staff have been offered various options to resolve the lack of work.
One involves reducing the four days on, four days off shift to a daily nine hours, which would result in about 60 redundancies.
The other was retaining the 10-hour days, four days on-four days off, which would involve 80 redundancies.
Staff are understood to favour that option.
Yesterday, Summit's company spokesman and director, Ricky Hammond-Tooke, did not disclose how many have expressed an interest in voluntary redundancy or options, describing it as "a gratifying number of inquiries about voluntary redundancies from among the 315 employees.
The number of employees who take voluntary redundancy was an important first step in the process of making decisions about the eventual number of job redundancies, he said.
To encourage the voluntary decisions, the company was offering an extra 10% on the gross payment that would be due to someone who took voluntary redundancy.
Those inquiring were being given a calculation of what was due so that they could discuss the issue realistically with their families and advisers.
"We expect to have the final number of confirmed voluntary redundancies to put into the consultation process by early next week," he said.
Talks with the two site unions and its delegates over the past few days had been "pretty frank" and good progress was being made with all employees in the consultation process.
Altogether, about 80% of employees are members of the unions.
Mr Hammond-Tooke said the company and the two site unions were also closely examining the Government's nine-day fortnight scheme to see if it was feasible at Summit.
"The issues are not as straightforward as they might seem and there are risks involved, which each side needs to carefully assess.
"This assessment might push out the consultation and decision time, but we all think it's important to be well-informed," he said.
Last Friday, the company met its employees off-site, to brief them on the company's situation of a downturn in orders, to present restructuring options for discussion and to ask employees for feedback and ideas.
Last November, shifts at the plant were reduced from 12 hours to 10 hours in response to downturn in orders.
Summit Wool Spinners has been owned since 1992 by the textile division of Sumitomo Corporation of Japan.
The company is New Zealand's largest independent wool spinner, supplying yarn to carpet and rug-makers in New Zealand, Australia, South East Asia and the United States.
