More than 200 jobs have been lost in the midlands with the announcement yesterday of the closure of the Tullamore base of an outdoor goods manufacturer, Lowe Alpine.
The decision to cease production was announced to a shocked staff at the plant yesterday morning. The move represents another major employment setback to Tullamore, following more than 60 job losses in two other local plants, Daiber Transfers and Irish Casings, in the past month.
The company has blamed rising costs and escalating competition in the textile sector for its decision. The workforce, over 75 per cent of which is female, is composed mainly of machinists, general operatives, clerical staff, cutters and mechanics.
The announcement yesterday, although unsurprising in the volatile textile industry, nonetheless came as a major shock to staff, over one-third of whom have worked with the company for more than 10 years.
There were immediate calls last night for action, on the jobs front in the county, with both SIPTU and Tullamore Chamber of Commerce calling for the swift intervention of Government agencies.
The Tanaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Ms Harney, last night said: "The priority now must be to find alternative employment following the closure of Lowe Alpine, and the effort to identify further investment will now be stepped up." She said the IDA was already in negotiations for a high-quality advance factory in the town.
It is understood that Lowe Alpine is considering relocating its Tullamore operations to low-wage economies in north Africa or the Far East. A number of human resource, information technology and administration posts will be relocated at the company's central office in Cumbria, England. It also intends to maintain a small sales and showroom presence in Tullamore.
Management and SIPTU, which represents almost all of the staff, are to meet in the coming weeks to discuss redundancy arrangements.
SIPTU branch secretary, Mr Seamus Buggle said the midlands and Offaly had suffered disproportionately from job losses in recent years.
The union would continue its call for a major jobs initiative in the county, he said.