Shannon executive warns of job losses in region

The newly appointed chief executive of Shannon Development, Mr Kevin Thompstone, has warned of significant job losses in the Shannon region in the coming months.

In response to the crisis in the aviation industry and the downturn in the technology sector, Mr Thompstone said there could be losses of one to two thousand jobs in the industrial sector in the region and the Shannon Free Zone.

Shannon Development, the State's only dedicated regional development company, has responsibility for those two sectors, which employ 22,000 people in the mid-west. It also promotes tourism and rural development.

Mr Thompstone said the "significant job losses" could occur by the end of this year and into next year.

He said: "I don't intend to be alarmist, but we need to be realistic. What we are facing right now is bit of a reality check, it was getting to the stage where people were assuming that the trend-line was continuing upwards forever.

"Shannon Development's job will be to see if we can limit the extent of the job losses and try and find as many replacement businesses and start-ups as we can. It will be shoulders to the wheel."

Much of Mr Thompstone's pessimism stems from the crisis facing Shannon Airport. Since September 11th, the airport has lost 96 flights a week - 68 of those being cut by Aer Lingus.

He says: "People need to wake up to the impact of this. It is a serious time for Shannon and the ability of Shannon to act as an engine for economic growth goes totally out the door if you do not have a world-class air service."

The impact of the cut in services is starkly laid out in Aer Lingus's winter schedule for the airport, where the earliest flight to Dublin to allow onward connections on a Monday is 1.15 p.m.; on Tuesday it is 2.05 p.m.

For businesses seeking to make connections to Europe, Mr Thomsptone says this makes it very difficult and unsustainable.

He added: "We are aiming here to have a world-class region to live in, to work, to learn, to spend leisure time, but there is no point in having the best product in the world if people can't get to it or you cannot bring it to them."

Underlining the grave concern at the situation among industrialists, Mr Thompstone said he received recently an email from an executive based in the Shannon Free Zone, who said that he will be under pressure corporately to move his plant to another European location due to the proposed cut in air-links.

Mr Thompstone says: "That is the seriousness of the situation, but is vital there is awareness and, coming from that, solutions will be put on the table and actions will be taken."

Mr Thompstone warns too against any further diminution of air access to the US from Shannon.

He says: "Aviation policy and decisions around aviation policy can't be taken solely within the confines of aviation interests. If Europe is true to the goals that it has set out in terms of regional policy, you got to have the instruments and the investment in place to ensure that you can fulfil that vision."

Mr Thompstone anticipates the region is facing two or three difficult years for tourism - already Shannon Development has established a task force to lessen the anticipated downturn in numbers.

Mr Thompstone (43) - born in The Gambia - was appointed to the job after serving as acting executive since August 2000 following the surprise resignation of Mr Paul Sheane.

He has been with the company since 1985, and is the fifth chief executive since it was established in 1959.