Unions call for ‘immediate engagement’ over Accenture redundancies

Unions representing workers at Accenture have jointly called for “immediate engagement” with the company on upcoming redundancy talks amid what they say are “disproportionate” job cuts in Ireland.

The global professional services company said on Monday it plans to cut 890 jobs from its Irish operation, bringing to almost 1,300 the number of jobs it will cut here this year. That equates to about 20 per cent of its Irish workforce.

Accenture said it is focusing on “ensuring we have the right talent to serve our clients and run our business today and tomorrow”.

In March, Accenture cut its global workforce by 2.5 per cent.

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Accenture job cuts: Staff ‘distraught and devastated’ after announcement

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The Financial Services Union (FSU) and the Communications Workers’ Union (CWU) jointly called on the firm to explain why it is “aggressively” and “disproportionately” targeting its Irish business for redundancies.

John O’Connell, general secretary of the FSU, said his union and the CWU would like to understand the rationale behind the company’s latest redundancy announcement.

“An explanation is required for the staff who have shown loyalty to Accenture and worked hard to contribute to the company’s growth and success,” he said.

Mr O’Connell said FSU members raised concerns during the last redundancy consultation process which “went unanswered” as the company shed 400 Irish jobs over recent months.

He said that those affected in this round of lay-offs have again reached out to their unions for support through the consultation process.

[ The Irish Times view on Accenture job cuts: a worrying signal ]

Seán McDonagh, general secretary of the CWU, said both unions are available to support their members and called on Accenture to “facilitate this fair and reasonable request on behalf of their staff”.

Mr McDonagh said staff in Accenture are “shocked and distraught” at the news this week and to ask them to undertake a consultation process of this size would be “profoundly unfair”.

“We understand the process for the election of the employee representatives has been set out and the time frame for the start of the consultation period has been set. To ensure a fair and transparent process, Accenture needs to ensure that the employee representatives have professional representation via their trade unions at these consultation meetings,” he said.

The unions have called for clarity around a number of issues, such as the criteria and individuals involved in the decision-making process, if there is an appeals process in place for individual redundancies and what terms will be offered to those in scope for redundancy.

The unions have also queried what Accenture is doing to mitigate against compulsory redundancy and what plans are in place to ensure their members have representatives in place for discussions.

Mr McDonagh also called on Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment Simon Coveney and Enterprise Ireland to be “proactive” in ensuring that staff are treated fairly through the redundancy process and that they have options open to them for employment elsewhere.

Both the FSU and CWU have said they insist on a voluntary-led approach to the redundancy process, a demand echoed by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (Ictu) in a separate statement on Thursday.

“Accenture must engage with unions, who have rightly questioned the rationale behind these significant measures, and explain why Irish workers are bearing such a disproportionate burden in contrast to what is happening elsewhere,” said Ictu general secretary Owen Reidy.

“I am also concerned that Accenture is continuing to recruit staff while announcing significant plans to make staff redundant,” he added.