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Up to 120 jobs are at risk in Waterford after Bausch and Lomb said it was seeking further cuts in its workforce.

The latest blow to jobs in the Waterford region comes only four months after the firm sought 195 redundancies in a bid cut costs. Attempts to secure cuts in production costs through the introduction of short time working in January had failed.

Siptu's branch organiser Marie Butler said the new redundancies would be on a voluntary basis, on the same terms as the last round of jobs cuts - six weeks pay per year of service, including statutory entitlements.

“The emphasis seems to be on making the plant more competitive”, she said. “While this is understandable from the company’s point of view, the sheer scale of job losses in Waterford now cries out for some form of Government intervention. The threat posed to the sustainability of the local economy is reaching critical proportions."