Sligo diagnostics plant to shed 29 jobs

Abbott Diagnostics has this morning announced 29 redundancies at its diagnostics plant in Sligo.

The company currently employs around 400 people.

Management at the firm, located in Finisklin in Sligo, informed staff at the plant yesterday that it is seeking 29 voluntary redundancies.

Abbott has now entered a consultation process with its workers to reduce some positions at its diagnostic manufacturing facility and a voluntary redundancy programme is being offered to manufacturing operations and support workers at the site.

A spokesperson for the company said that the decision is in response to the decline in volume of AxSYM, a mature diagnostics platform that will be retired from the market.

The Sligo facility is currently working on the development of the "next-generation diagnostic solutions", which will come to market within the next few years.

No other Abbott sites in Sligo, or in Ireland, are impacted by this announcement.