JOHNNIE Walker's closure-hit bottling plant has had a six-month stay of execution, the Record can reveal. The factory in Kilmarnock, Ayrshire, is now scheduled to shut in May 2012. An insider at parent company Diageo also said there would be no compulsory redundancies at the factory until next October. Our source said: "The new closure date means workers will at least get a little bit more in pension contributions - but that's little comfort to people who've worked hard for years and been rewarded with the loss of their jobs." The insider also revealed details on offer to axed workers, including voluntary redundancy packages worth about five times the value of statutory terms. And the company will pay bonuses of up to £7500 for those who serve right up to the point of closure. Diageo confirmed last month they were going ahead with plans to close the bottling plant and the Port Dundas distillery in Glasgow, hitting 900 workers.