Cost of globalisation - How can we beat €2,400 a year workers?

SOMETIMES events and how they transpire point to chastening realities. The announcement that nearly 600 jobs are to be lost in Waterford when the TalkTalk call centre closes in less than a month is one.

That specific announcement came as a complete surprise but globalisation has cost thousands of Irish workers their jobs already and it is foolish to pretend the process will not see more jobs moved from Ireland — and the rest of the EU — to lower-cost economies. This week’s announcement comes just days after Bank of America’s decision to close its credit card business in Carrick-on-Shannon cost 750 people their jobs.

That some Waterford workers learnt of their fate on Facebook just adds to the sense of disappointment and powerlessness in a region that has suffered more than 2,000 redundancies in less than two years. The idea that 575 people who, by all accounts, are an exemplary workforce can be so easily cast aside because their employers can make more money elsewhere is one of the great challenges to first world economies and social stability. It asks fundamental questions about the rights and responsibilities of property and capital.