Staff to vote on ‘modified’ Bausch & Lomb proposals

Over 1,100 workers at the southeast’s largest private sector employer are expected to vote early next week on a series of cuts which would see almost 200 of their number losing their jobs.

Staff from Bausch & Lomb in Waterford were briefed last night on a “modified” set of proposals by management who want to implement tough cost-cutting measures which the company says are necessary to save the plant.

The company still want to shed nearly 200 jobs but have agreed to reduce pay cuts from 20 per cent to 7.5 per cent although staff members said the 7.5 per cent cut is to core pay and when other cuts, such as the loss of bonus payments, are taken into account there will be almost 15 per cent shaved from annual pay-packets.

Emotions ran high at last night’s meeting of Siptu members, which lasted more than an hour and a half and was attended by hundreds of employees at the company canteen.

Siptu sector organiser Alan O’Leary said after the meeting that workers are in a “very difficult situation” and need time to consider the company’s latest proposals.

A vote on the package presented by management and believed to be their final offer is likely to be taken on Sunday and Monday.

A meeting was also held of TEEU members and one representative, when asked about the mood of workers, said: “You can imagine what the mood is like,” before declining to comment further.

Meanwhile, a meeting is to take place today between union representatives and local politicians in Waterford in an attempt to keep political pressure on the government to do more for the workers.

Talks between unions and management and chaired by the Labour Relations Commission broke down without agreement yesterday following a second successive all-night session.

The negotiations started 11 days ago following the shock announcement the previous week that management wanted to cut 200 jobs and implement pay cuts of 20 per cent for the rest of the staff.

According to Bausch & Lomb’s American management, the €20 million cuts were necessary to keep the Waterford plant open as payroll costs were running at 30 per cent higher than in the company’s facility at Rochester, New York.

However, the proposals came in for much criticism from unions, their members and also from local politicians, while the Government was heavily criticised when it emerged they had known for months about the imminent cuts at Bausch & Lomb.