The last traditional electronics manufacturer in the west Donegal Gaeltacht yesterday announced that it is laying off 43 of its 57 workforce. Chris Ashmore reports.
Nuvotem Talema, which manufactures and designs transformers, is the main employer in the village of Crolly.
Established in 1975, the company employs more than 500 people worldwide and began its Donegal operations in 1980.
According to a spokesman for Údarás na Gaeltachta, the firm has been experiencing increased pressures in recent years due to competition from low-cost economies.
However, the firm has denied a claim by the local Fine Gael TD, Mr Dinny McGinley, that the jobs are being outsourced to its sister plants in the Czech Republic and India. The firm has attributed the job losses to a fall in demand and says it hopes that production will resume in Donegal at a later date. The jobs being retained are managerial and sales positions.
Meanwhile, Mr McGinley has called on the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Mr Ó Cuív, to "rescue these valuable jobs or to find a replacement without delay".
In recent years the west Donegal Gaeltacht has experienced several hundred job losses with the closure of traditional electronics firms including BMR, MDR and SMTC.