THOUSANDS OF Quinn Group employees staged protests in Dublin and Cavan yesterday to highlight their concern about the Financial Regulator placing Quinn Insurance in provisional administration.
They called on the regulator to overturn his decision to stop Quinn Insurance accepting new business in the UK.
The regulator launched an investigation into the company after successfully applying to put it into provisional administration at the end of March. The office had expressed “very serious” concerns about the company’s ability to meet its liabilities to policyholders and instructed Quinn to stop writing new business in the UK, which was described as “loss-making” and “unprofitable”.
Yesterday’s protest in Dublin began outside the Dáil and protesters walked to Government Buildings on Merrion Street. Letters were handed in at the Department of Finance and the Taoiseach’s office while protesters chanted “save our jobs”.
The letter said employees understood Quinn Insurance Ltd had never had any issues paying debts. It called on the Government to show support to the company to protect jobs in the same way as it would if the company were a multi-national. The letter also called for the imposition of provisional administration and the ban on new business in the UK to be lifted.
Mona Bermingham, one of the employees who organised the protest, and who is also PR officer for the Quinn Group, said the company had a support network throughout Ireland that depended on the UK business.
“It is crippling the company from top to bottom,” she said.
Workers had travelled to Dublin from many of the group’s businesses including the Slieve Russell Hotel in Cavan, Quinn Glass in Fermanagh and Quinn Insurance in Cardiff, Wales.
Patricia McGloin, a claims handler at Quinn Insurance at Blanchardstown in Dublin, said she was very upset about what the regulator had done and could not believe there was anything wrong with the company.
“A week ago I had a secure job; now I don’t know what will happen,” she said.
“I work in the UK market and the decision not to allow us take new UK business has a very serious effect.”
Oliver McGovern, from the Slieve Russell Hotel, said all Quinn jobs were on the line.
“If something is not done today, I don’t know what will happen. The whole group will go down with the insurance company,” he said.
Paul Dolan from Quinn Glass, which employs 360 people in Fermanagh, said he believed Mr Quinn was being unfairly treated.
“Cavan, Leitrim and Monaghan would have nothing except for Seán Quinn, we’d all be back emigrating,” he said.
Georgina Butler from Cardiff said the ban on new business in the UK meant they would run out of work within two months. It came as a complete surprise to her the UK was not making a profit for Quinn Insurance.
“We are snowed under with work all the time. How can they not be making any money?” she asked.
Independent MEP for the northwest, Marian Harkin, who attended the protest, said the Government should engage and show “a real shared sense of purpose” with the Quinn group and the Quinn employees.
Quinn employees marching in Cavan gathered outside the office of Minister for Agriculture Brendan Smith and then marched to the town’s social welfare offices.
Workers who protested in Cavan town shortly after noon yesterday chanted “Save our jobs”. The protest lasted about half an hour and ended with a Quinn Group representative handing over a letter of concern from staff to Mr Smith’s secretary.
Family members along with a number of local public representatives from both sides of the Border also marched with the employees to show support.