Waterford Crystal redundancy terms criticised

AS union leaders and management at Waterford Crystal prepare to meet today to work out cuts and redundancy terms, one local TD has criticised the company for the redundancy terms it proposes for the 485 staff facing the dole queue.

Fine Gael’s John Deasy has urged senior managers to reconsider the package on offer to staff losing their jobs. He has appealed in particular to chief executive Redmond O’Donoghue to look again at the compensation package on offer. He said the package simply does not reflect the commitments given by staff over the years and the sacrifices they have made over the years for the good of the company.

“People are not happy with the redundancy package on offer to them. I believe that it does not show appreciation for those who are long-time workers in Waterford Glass.

“As I understand it, everything is still on the table. Negotiations between unions and management are still at an early stage so it’s hard to know what is being proposed. My concern is that a better redundancy package needs to be offered, particularly to those workers who have 30 to 35 years service. Under the current redundancy package, a lot of those years simply are not recognised.” The company has so far remained tightlipped about the proposed redundancy package.

However, it is believed that six weeks’ redundancy per year worked, with a ceiling of not more than two years’ wages, is being proposed. It would net most staff no more than about €70,000.