PACKARD Electric has been urged by Mr Pat Rabbitte to "think again" about its decision to reject a Labour Court recommendation on redundancy payments for its 800 employees.
The company has offered five weeks pay for each year of service, including statutory entitlements of half a week's pay a year. The unions had sought 10 weeks.
On Friday, the Labour Court recommended the company improve its offer to five weeks plus statutory entitlements - making a total of 5 1/2 weeks pay a year for younger workers and six weeks for those over 41.
A Packard spokesman said yesterday it had considered the Labour Court recommendation, but felt unable to implement it. He repeated the company's offer of five weeks a year, including statutory entitlements.
"We feel that the redundancy package we already negotiated is fair and far more generous than that provided for by Ireland's Statutory Redundancy Payments Act", he said. "The DelphiPackard Electric package represents considerable thought and effort on behalf of the company."
The spokesman said implementing the Labour Court recommendation would cost Packard an extra £2 million. "The company is just not in a position to pay that", he said.
Mr Rabbitte, Minister of State for Enterprise and Employment said the decision was extremely regrettable.
"I would urge that both part would respect the role of the Labour Court and accept its recommendation, even at this late stage", he said.
"In cases like these, it would be very unusual to find a world leader company repudiate to findings of the Labour Court. I would sincerely ask them to think again.
Unions at the plant intend to press ahead with plans to consider the Labour Court recommendation at a meeting today.
A SIPTU spokesman, Mr Brendan Byrne, said union officials would recommend acceptance of the recommendation, despite the company's decision to reject it.
A spokesman for the ATGWU, Mr Michael O'Reilly, said he was unsurprised by the company's stance. "This is the way this company does everything", he said.