Martin steps in to avert closure of Blindcraft

CLOSE to 40 visually impaired workers at Blindcraft yesterday won a last-minute reprieve from redundancy after the Government agreed to provide a new strategy for the agency.

The State agency, which provides employment for 36 blind and visually impaired workers, was scheduled to close down with the loss of all jobs after the Department of Health’s Prospectus report recommended the abolition of the Board for the Employment of the Blind.

However, following a meeting with Health Minister Micheál Martin yesterday, a new working group is to be established to provide a new strategy to keep Blindcraft open.

Speaking after yesterday’s meeting SIPTU’s Dublin Regional Secretary Ms Patricia King described the meeting as very constructive.

“Up until now Blindcraft was operating under a sentence of death with a board whose sole remit was to close the organisation down. The Working Group will consult with FÁS and Enterprise Ireland on developing a viable business plan for Blindcraft,” she said.

Ms King said she was particularly pleased that a guarantee had been given that the economic status of employees will not suffer, whatever direction the agency takes in the future.

Staff representatives who attended yesterday’s meeting also expressed their satisfaction. Shop Steward Paula Dorrington said: “I feel very positive that there will be jobs for us all in Blindcraft leading into the future. I was very stressed and I feel a great weight has been lifted off me today.”

Worker Representative Christy McEvoy said: “There is still a lot of sorting out to do and quite a bit of assessment to be done by the Working Group when it is set up. But we hope that with the introduction of new trades and proper continuity of work we will be a viable organisation again within a couple of years.”

The working group contains representatives of SIPTU, the workforce, management and Department of Health and Children. Funding for the factory is estimated to reach €828,000. A further €350,000 is received from local health boards. Trading income is estimated to remain static at €50,000.