Unions have condemned the announcement by insurer Aviva today that it planned to halve its workforce in Ireland as the Taoiseach pledged to work with the company on the issue.
The company this morning said it planned to implement 950 redundancies in Ireland from the Irish division of the company and its European business, which is based in Ireland, over the next two-and-a-half years. The redundancies will involve 770 staff from Aviva Ireland and 180 from Aviva Europe.
Enda Kenny this morning said it was an awful day for Aviva’s employees. Speaking in the Dáil he said the losses were a stark reminder of the competitiveness challenge facing the Government. He added the IDA had been instructed by Minister for Jobs Richard Bruton to work with the company on the issue.
Also speaking in the Dáil, Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin accused the Taoiseach of an "appalling lack of leadership" for failing to meet Aviva bosses.
"This morning we learn that despite these warnings, the Taoiseach failed to take any initiative, failed to use his office to put pressure on Aviva to reconsider and failed to intervene at a time when he may have been able to save some, if not all of the almost 1,000 jobs that are being axed. This is an appalling lack of leadership.
“Each job lost is a tragedy for that individual and their family. Each of the 950 individuals in Aviva and their families will have been correct to expect that their Taoiseach was doing all that he could to protect those jobs."
It was “a very difficult and shattering morning’’ for Aviva’s employees, Mr Martin added.
Unite spokesman Brian Gallagher said staff were "absolutely devastated" and that the process had been "unnecessarily hard" on employees, with "appalling" communication from the company. He said decisions had been taken in London without due consideration of the impact the uncertainty has had on the workforce.
"The axe has fallen harder and sharper than than the worst fears of staff."
Mr Gallagher said the union understood 180 redundancies would be be implemented "fairly quickly", and that the union would be meeting management in Dublin today, in Galway tomorrow and in Cork on Friday.
Siptu said the planned Aviva jobs cuts highlighted the "urgent need" for a Government strategy to protect employment and promote economic growth.
“This is a devastating blow to 950 workers and their families who now face an uncertain future. They will join hundreds of thousands of people on the Live Register and struggling to survive, to keep up their mortgage payments and feed, clothe and educate their children,” president Jack O'Connor said.
He called on the Minister for Jobs Richard Bruton to promote an investment programme that will “put more back into the economy than the budget takes out.
"The Government must act to generate real, sustainable jobs that will rekindle hope and confidence", he said, adding such a response was necessary rather than "hand-wringing platitudes".
Labour TD Kevin Humphreys called for support to be given to Aviva workers. "I believe that the various State agencies must now be mobilised to provide whatever supports they can to those Aviva staff who will find themselves out of work," he said in a statement.
Mr Humphreys said he would be asking Government investigate whether European funding could be secured to help workers to retrain and upskill, and that he would be seeking a meeting with Minister for Jobs Richard Bruton.