UNIONS last night said the remaining 370 workers at one of the region's biggest furniture companies could be made redundant unless a buyer is found in the next two weeks.

The shock announcement came as 180 workers at Stag Furniture, based in Sunderland, were asked to leave with immediate effect yesterday.

The company -formerly Silentnight -went into administration last week after a downturn in consumer spending.

A spokesman for administrator PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) said yesterday that the 180 redundancies were necessary after it conducted a financial review of the business.

He said: "The administrators have reached this decision as a direct result of the reduced levels of customer orders being seen since the beginning of the year."

Union officials last night said they had been told that the remaining 372 employees would lose their jobs unless a buyer is found in the next fortnight.

Michael Hopper, of the GMB union, said: "We have been told that if a buyer is not found in the next two weeks, then the business would close.

"The company is legally bound to talk to the trade unions, but they have not consulted with us at all. They are refusing to discuss things with us.

"It is absolutely disgusting."

The company, based on the North Hylton Road Trading Estate, in Southwick, is the UK's largest manufacturer and supplier of assembled cabinet furniture. It is continuing to trade and administrators are hopeful of a sale.

Ian Green, a partner at PWC, said: "We are encouraged by the initial levels of interest that have been expressed in the business, but more time is required to determine whether this will ultimately convert into a firm offer for the business."

Sunderland City Council met company officials and administrators this week. Tom Hurst, the council's chief investment officer, said: "We will continue to work together to provide support and assistance to the company, and agencies such as JobCentre Plus will be asked to send in a rapid response team to help staff concerned about their futures."

Mr Hopper said workers would not get a redundancy payout from Stag. He said: "The company says it has not got the money to pay them. The trade union will have to apply to the Government for it."