Up to 100 jobs are to be lost before the end of the year at the Square D Plant in Ballinasloe, Co Galway. Some 16 workers were made redundant last week at the factory and up to 50 production staff are expected to follow by late summer, with further redundancies later in the year.
The job losses are taking place as a result of the closure of a production line at the plant, which manufactures a range of electrical circuit breakers for the worldwide export market.
Square D was established in Ballinasloe in 1971 and currently employs a staff of 450. SIPTU, which represents production workers at the plant, is negotiating a voluntary redundancy package which has yet to be finalised.