Waterford Crystal staff angry over executive pay

Waterford Crystal workers have reacted angrily to the news that the troubled company's executives have given themselves salary increases while staff are being asked to take a pay cut. Barry O'Halloran reports.

The annual report, published on Thursday, showed that Waterford Wedgwood paid chief executive Mr Redmond O'Donoghue €1.062 million in the year to the end of March 3rd, a near €50,000 increase on the previous year.

At the same time, Waterford Crystal chief executive Mr John Foley had his salary increased by €180,000 to €672,000. The raise was largely due to extra pension payments.

Group chairman Sir Anthony O'Reilly had his fees unchanged at €63,000. Recently appointed chief operating officer Mr Peter Cameron received a bonus of €216,000, but his pay was down €300,000 at €649,000.

Yesterday, Mr Walter Cullen, an official of the Amalgamated Transport and General Workers' Union (ATGWU), delivered a broadside at the chief executives, saying they were effectively taking the money from the workers' pockets.

Management is asking workers at the Waterford plant to work seven weeks short time between now and next March to cut losses. Mr Cullen accused executives of applying double standards.

"On the one hand, our members are being asked to take a seven-week pay cut," he said. "On the other hand, directors and executives are getting an increase in pay.

"The company pleaded inability to pay Sustaining Progress [the national pay deal\] last year and the assessor appointed by the Labour Relations Commission (LRC) verified the company's claim."

Speaking on RTÉ Radio's News at One, he argued that a pay increase could not be justified in light of that fact. "That's completely unacceptable," he said.

Mr Cullen suggested that workers would be unlikely to agree to the cuts in light of the revelations about executive pay. He said that, on Thursday, workers had "very, very reluctantly" agreed to one week short time. "But that was before we had possession of this information," he said.

The trade unionist warned that, in the future, workers would demand that all pay increases due to them would be paid in full. He also pointed out that the workers had their own financial commitments. "Our members cannot afford to lose seven weeks wages," he said.

Mr Cullen said the executives reminded him of "fat cats who were taking the cream from the workers' pockets".

Waterford posted a pre-tax loss of €45 million for the year to the end of March. The company has been dealing with difficult conditions in its biggest markets, the US and Europe, for the last three years.