Laura Ashley staff protest in Dublin

The company which owns Laura Ashley has been accused of behaving "abominably" towards staff from its Grafton Street branch which it is proposing to make redundant.

Mandate Trade Union official Dave Moran said the company's refusal to pay only two weeks statutory redundancy to the 22 staff at the store and its refusal to engage with the Labour Relations Commission (LRC) was "like something going back to Dickensian times".

Workers at the store are due to be given notice tomorrow that they are being made redundant. This follows a one-month consultation period. The store closed last week.

The company is sub-letting its most prestigious location in Ireland to the Disney Corporation. Some of the workers have been offered part-time work in Laura Ashley's six other stores in Ireland.

Workers staged a picket outside the store today.

Lorraine Bryson, who has been with the company 10 years, described Laura Ashley's behaviour as "disgraceful" and disrespectful of workers who had shown loyalty to the company.

Another worker Laura Waters, who has been with the company eight years, said: “There is no willingness to talk to us. We're disappointed in the way that we are being treated and we are so angry that a profitable company is only offering us statutory redundancy.”

Laura Ashley made half-year profits of £10.5 million (€11.8 million) in the year up to July and its turnover increased by 5.7 per cent to £135.1 million (€152.5 million).

Mr Moran claimed the British-based company had not engaged in any meaningful way during the 30-day consultation period and had refused three times to attend the LRC.

"Because they don't have to, they don't feel they should," he said.

He said it was a "bit rich" for the company to send a letter to employees who went on the Joe Duffy Show threatening them with redundancy when they were going to be made redundant anyway.

A statement from Laura Ashley said the closure of the shop was a “commercial decision”, although it did not address the issue of either statutory redundancy or its refusal to go to the LRC.

“We are in consultation with our staff to explore alternative employment wherever possible,” the statement said.