A majority of workers at the Unifi Textured Yarns (Europe) Limited plant in Letterkenny, Co Donegal - which is due to shut down in October - have voted to reject the redundancy package being offered by the company. Chris Ashmore
SIPTU is now seeking to refer the matter to the Labour Relations Commission after a ballot of its members resulted in 57 per cent voting against the deal.
The troubled textiles firm, which employed 780 people at its peak, announced in July that it is closing its Irish operations in Letterkenny.
The American-owned company is offering workers 3.9 weeks of pay for every year's service, including statutory entitlements. This was the same package that was accepted by those laid off in 2002 and 2003. Yesterday the company declined to issue any statement other than to say that "negotiations are continuing". Senior SIPTU officials were also reluctant to talk on the issue.
The Mayor of Letterkenny, Cllr Dessie Larkin, yesterday called on the company to consider making a more generous offer.
"While it is the same package as before, when the last redundancies took place people thought that Unifi was still going to be in the town for several more years. It is going to be much harder now for these people to find new employment. Unifi's offer is very poor when you compare it to Aer Lingus where workers could get nine weeks pay per year of service," he said.
He also revealed that he has written to the chief executive of Unifi in the US, Mr Brian Parke, requesting that the firm make a contribution to Letterkenny Institute of Technology so it can leave a legacy of its positive time in Donegal.
Unifi's decision to close its Irish operations was due to a combination of rising costs, competition from Asia and weaker than expected demand for its polyester yarn.
Meanwhile, a major rally has been organised by Sinn Féin to take place in Letterkenny on September 25th under the theme "Jobs and Equality for Donegal".