Mahon print plant gears-up for production

THOMAS Crosbie Holdings, owners of the Irish Examiner, the Evening Echo, the Sunday Business Post and several regional newspapers, yesterday announced that Webprint Concepts will start printing its titles on January 23 next.

The outsourcing move will result in voluntary redundancies among production staff at the Irish Examiner.

Yesterday, 47 of the 56 print, dispatch and maintenance staff affected by the decision, and who had already accepted a voluntary redundancy package, were given their lay-off dates.

The redundancy deal had been agreed with SIPTU, Amicus/ GPMU and TEEU and the staff will leave in eight weeks time.

The remaining nine production employees are to transfer to the new Webprint Concepts print plant at Mahon Point, Cork.

Speaking to employees at the Irish Examiner's Academy Street offices yesterday, chief executive Tom Murphy said the announcement heralded the end of an era for staff at the newspaper.

Paying warm tribute to the contribution of production staff at the paper, which has been printed in Academy Street since 1841, Mr Murphy said that while the decision to outsource the group's printing operations was made and communicated a long time ago, yesterday's announcement would still touch an emotional chord with everybody in the company.

"We have been lucky enough to enjoy top class printing from top class people with some of our colleagues being second and third generation employees," said Mr Murphy, after thanking the staff for their contribution and professionalism over the years.

Under the terms of the agreement, all departing employees will receive statutory redundancy and an ex-gratia payment of five weeks' salary for every year of service.

However, the ex-gratia payment is capped at one year's pay for people aged over 53, who are also entitled to an early retirement pension.

For people aged under 53 the ex-gratia element of the package is capped at two year's pay and they will enjoy deferred pension entitlements under the rules of the company pension scheme.

One of TCH's regional titles, The Kingdom, based in Killarney, will be the first to roll-off the new presses on Monday, January 23 and will be followed by all other newspapers in the media group on a scheduled basis.

An additional 10 production staff from TCH's Western People have also accepted voluntary redundancy, with two transferring from Ballina to the Mahon plant.