Firm blames slump for 250 lost jobs

AN electronics company which is to shut in November with the loss of 200 full-time and 50 part-time jobs, has blamed a global downturn in the sector for the closure of its Athlone plant.

Manufacturers Services (Athlone) Ltd (MSL) makes printed circuit boards and was set up by former Digital executive Kevin Melia nine years ago. News of the job cuts was announced to staff yesterday at a morning meeting with local management.

In recent months, MSL has been restructuring its operations with 4,500 redundancies worldwide. Last January, 23 voluntary job losses were sought from the administration sections in Athlone.