MANAGEMENT AND workers involved in the dispute at Shannon company Element Six have been urged to attend talks at the Labour Relations Commission “without any preconditions”.
In a statement issued yesterday,Minister for Defence Willie O’Dea said that dialogue was the only method by which jobs could be saved at the company formally known as De Beers.
Up to 370 jobs could be lost at the Clare plant unless a survival plan that will save 163 of these jobs is supported.
“I urge all parties to engage in dialogue without any preconditions at the Labour Relations Commission. It is vitally important for the workers and management, as well as for the local and national economy, that talks get under way without delay,” said the Minister.
“I have met with all sides in this dispute but today I urge all parties to start talks at the Labour Relations Commission. There is everything to be gained,” he added.
The dispute at the company centres on the redundancy package on offer for 207 workers who will lose their jobs.
Element Six is offering 2½ weeks of wages for every year of service in addition to the two-week statutory redundancy payment. While some 150 workers who accepted a redundancy deal last January received eight weeks of pay for every year with the company, the latest deal has been capped at one year.
In a statement issued last week, Element Six urged all parties to engage in “genuine discussions” to save the 163 jobs at the plant.