Motorola to close Cork plant in May

Motorola it to close its Co Cork plant with the loss of 330 jobs at the end of May, it emerged this evening.

The phone company announced at the end of January it was entering into an "employee consultation process" with staff at the Blackrock facility. The company is set to retain only 20 jobs in Cork.

Fine Gael deputy for Cork South Central and MEP for Ireland South, Simon Coveney, said that the people in Cork were shocked at the number of job losses in Cork City and County in 2007.

Yesterday, Bourns Electronics announced it is to close its manufacturing and support operation by the middle of next year with the loss of 80 jobs.

The US firm, which operates in the Mahon Industrial Estate in Cork, will leave just 10 personnel in Ireland as it moves its operations to lower-cost economies in Hungary and Mexico. It blamed high costs in Ireland and tighter margins in the global markets.

In January, US drugs company Pfizer said it was going to scale back its operation in Cork where it employs some 500 people. Pfizer said it was trying to find a buyer to purchase as a going concern two units in Cork employing 480 people. Some 65 people at a third plant were to be made redundant.

"The confirmation of the loss of 330 high quality jobs at Motorola is a huge blow, primarily for the employees directly affected but also to the wider Cork economy," said Mr Coveney.

"It is important to remain optimistic, but the next Government will have to focus its energies on maintaining competitiveness for foreign investment and expansion, a task that this FF/PD Government have clearly failed to do."

The news from Motorola comes on the back of a series of job loss announcement for the Munster region.

A total of 280 workers at the Procter and Gamble plant in Nenagh, Co Tipperary will lose their jobs by the end of 2009, it was confirmed yesterday.

Staff were informed of the news at a meeting, although the cuts were widely expected after local speculation and media reports earlier in the week.

After a year-long review of operations across Europe, management revealed details of the cost-cutting plans to the 600 employees at the Nenagh factory, which made profits of $10 million (€7.63 million) in 2005.

Software firm Thomson Scientific announced its intention to cut 200 jobs from its workforce in Limerick yesterday. The move came as part of the company's plan to integrate its patent and literature editorial production processes, proposing the transfer of work from its facilities in Limerick, Manchester, Holbrook House in London, and Cherry Hill in the United States to the company's Indian facilities.

Thomson Scientific, which has completed a 30-day consultation period with workers, hasn't given a definite date for the job losses, but expects the redundancy programme to take about 18 months to complete. It has also assured workers that it will do all it can to help them to find new jobs.