US PHARMACEUTICAL giant Becton Dickinson (BD) yesterday confirmed it would be laying off 22 people from its Drogheda production plant.
It said the “reduction in headcount” reflected the challenging and competitive global environment. BD is the longest established IDA-backed medical devices manufacturer in the country and opened its Drogheda plant in 1964.
Its Irish headquarters are in Dún Laoghaire and both plants are global manufacturing centres for specific diabetes care devices: blood lancets in Drogheda and insulin injecting pen needles in Dún Laoghaire.
Its workforce peaked close to 400 but is now 126. The 22 jobs will be lost over the next six months. Half are understood to be workers on short-term contracts that will not be renewed; the others will be sought on a voluntary basis.
Siptu is the largest union in the plant and its regional secretary John King said: “Any announcement of job losses is always difficult but it is welcome that the company is maintaining its commitment to employment on the site.”
The company recently invested approximately €25 million in production lines in Drogheda and it is believed that the demand for those specific products was below what was anticipated and was partly behind the decision to cut jobs.