Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 19 April 2018
207. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation the actions she has taken to protect jobs at a company (details supplied); the supports in place for employees that will be made redundant; if she has spoken with the management of the company regarding these job losses; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17307/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraI am very conscious of the anxiety that the announcement of possible job losses by the company concerned creates for the workers there. My first thoughts are with these workers and their families as well as their local communities as they receive this difficult news.
I understand that the company in question are planning to achieve cost savings by driving simplification of its products and processes to deliver greater efficiency across its operating systems. They are seeking to realign their cost bases to match the leaner and more agile organisation that they need to become. Therefore, they are proposing a voluntary incentivised exit scheme which will be open to most employees. It is proposed that any redundancies that will result because of the restructure will be on a voluntary basis and the locations will depend on the level of uptake.
Regarding these possible job losses, Ireland has a robust suite of employment rights legislation, which offers extensive protections to employees. The Workplace Relations Commission is mandated to secure compliance with employment rights legislation. Workplace Relations information personnel are available to meet staff of the affected companies, either individually or collectively, to discuss their employment rights. The Workplace Relations Customer Service Section can be contacted at http://www.workplacerelations.ie or Lo-call: 1890 80 80 90. The website also provides extensive information on employment rights.
In addition, the State provides industrial relations mechanisms to assist parties in their efforts to resolve any differences they may have.
I understand that the company concerned is not a client of the State Development Agencies, Enterprise Ireland and IDA Ireland, or the Local Enterprise Offices.
Employment retention and creation continues to be the primary objective of this Government and we have been working hard to create the improved economic conditions which will support the maintenance of existing jobs and the creation of new ones. Since becoming Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation, I have made jobs and enterprise in the regions my top priority.
The Regional Action Plan for Jobs initiative is a central pillar of the Government’s ambition to create 200,000 new jobs by 2020. A key objective of each of the 8 regional plans is to have a further 10 to 15 per cent at work in each region by 2020, with the unemployment rate of each region not more than one percentage point greater than the national average. Progress across the eight regions has been very positive since the launch of the initiative, with an increase in employment of 8.5% or 118,600 jobs in the regions outside of Dublin and 166,800 additional jobs nationwide, from Q1 2015 to Q2 2017.
The Local Enterprise offices - or LEOs - are available to support anyone with a business idea and who wants to consider entrepreneurship as a career option. I would urge anyone who was made redundant or who is in danger of losing their job to contact with their local LEO to explore available options. Further information can be found on the LEO website at www.localenterprise.ie.
I am confident that the measures outlined in the Regional Action Plans for Jobs together with other policies being pursued by the State agencies and the Local Enterprise Offices will continue to support enterprise development and provide employment opportunities.
