FORMER CBI boss Lord Jones joined workers from steel giant Corus in a protest march today aimed at urging the Government to wake up and take action to halt the jobs crisis gripping the UK.

The demonstration in Birmingham was part of a campaign by Unite to press ministers to do more to help manufacturers weather the recession and hold back the tide of job losses which has engulfed British industry in recent months.

Workers from firms hit by the recession, including Corus, where 3,000 jobs are under threat at its Redcar plant, and car companies Vauxhall and Jaguar Land Rover joined the protest.

Tony Woodley, joint leader of Unite, told a rally in the centre of Birmingham: "Our mission is to get ministers to wake up and act to halt the jobs crisis, and our message is clear: workers are not going to pay the price for the bankers' crisis.

"There are now more than two million people unemployed, with 250,000 joining the dole queue in the last couple of months alone.

"We cannot risk seeing another forgotten generation of young people who cannot find work and have their lives ruined as a result.

"I welcome the fact that some business leaders like Digby Jones are taking that stand with us for jobs and industry. Ministers have taken some welcome steps but we need much more from Government.

"We need to get money - our money - moving from the banks to industry. We need a short-time working subsidy to keep plants open and workers in jobs until recovery comes.

"We need factories and plants open for when recovery comes because if they go they will be gone forever.

"We need a change in the whole direction of Government thinking."