140 jobs lost at Togher paper plant - 120 laid off at Waterford facility

A FURTHER 260 people are facing the prospect of the dole after the latest employment crisis to devastate the Munster region.

In a five-minute meeting at 11am yesterday morning, 140 of the 173 staff at the Smurfit Kappa paper processing plant in Togher, Cork, were told their positions are to be axed under a “rationalisation” plan for the site.

The news followed a further 120 fresh job losses at the Bausch & Lomb eye health products facility in Waterford, and eclipsed the creation of 70 renewable energy jobs in Dublin by the O’Kane Plumbing and Electrics firm over the next three years.

In a statement confirming the mass redundancies, a spokesperson for Smurfit Kappa claimed the step, believed to be the result of a 50% drop in income at the site over the past two years, was unavoidable. However, he continued, “a significant manufacturing presence is being retained to service a range of local customers throughout the Munster region,” with staff at eight other Smurfit Kappa facilities across the country given assurances the job losses would be confined to Cork.

SIPTU, which represents the majority of workers affected by the job cuts, is due to begin negotiations with the firm over the redundancy packages for staff later today, with talks expected to be concluded by the end of the month.

“The shop stewards have been told the redundancies are because of a 50% drop in the company’s book,” explained SIPTU branch organiser Paul de Puis. “We are meeting with management to discuss where the remaining jobs will be, the redundancy package, and what possibilities there are for increasing that figure.”

After yesterday’s short management announcement at the Togher site, dejected staff left the plant in a scene which was earlier mirrored at the Bausch & Lomb plant in Waterford where a further 120 jobs have been lost.

The Waterford plant currently employs 1,200 people manufacturing contact lenses and other eye health products.

While 70 new positions were announced in Dublin by the O’Kane Plumbing and Electrics firm over the past 24 hours, the black day for employment in Munster was further compounded after SIPTU confirmed industrial action is being planned for Saturday by members at the Imperial Hotel.

The situation has occurred after management at the firm, based on the South Mall area of Cork city, made attempts in recent weeks to introduce a 15% wage cut across the board.

This situation was rejected by staff. However, management have since introduced a five-hour cut in the 39 hour week — a situation SIPTU have warned is an affront to workers’ rights.

“It’s one thing to put people on half-time because they could be entitled to the jobseekers allowance then, so they’re not always that affected. But this isn’t the same thing,” explained a union spokesperson.