Cadburys to cut 450 jobs at Coolock factory

dublin | worker & community struggles and protests | news report

Wednesday November 29, 2006 17:59

by w.

"high costs" blamed

One of Coolock's biggest employers, Cadburys, are looking to lay off up to one third of it's 1,100 staff over the next three years. Cadburys say that they are committed to remaining in Ireland, having invested over 80m euro since 1999 but must reduce staff numbers due to rising costs.

Cadbury's Coolock Plant - where wages get in the way of profits.

Costs of running the factory are said to have increased by over 26 percent reaching 97m euro while profits have halved over the last four years. Cadburys say that wages have increased by 2.4% while pension costs have gone up by almost 250%. Cadburys have blamed rising industrial electricity costs which are 30% higher in Ireland than in the UK and have increased by 55% in the past four years. Local politicians have blamed the government for ignoring the rising cost of production.

The job losses come as a massive blow to coolock, an area which already has a 25% level of unemployment. SIPTU says the reduncies are in the context of Cadburys remaining in Coolock and Ireland with no threat of job losses at their factories in Rathmore, Co Kerry or Tallaght.

The situation clearly shows that staff are being viewed as expendable and that wages and salaries are viewed as expenses which the company must cut to remain profitable. While Cabury's currently earns billions in profits each year and could easily afford to keep all of their staff at the Coolock plant the interests of their CEO's and shareholders are considered more important.

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Comments (7 of 7)

Job Losses

by John

Wed Nov 29, 2006 19:30

A rationalisation involving a loss of 440 jobs over 3 years. The Irish economy is currently generating a NET increase of almost 100,000 jobs per annum. So, over the next 3 years there will be a NET increase of around 300,000 jobs in Ireland. The 440 made redundant, almost all voluntary redundancies, will have no difficulty finding re-employment from the pool of 300,000 new jobs created. And, by the way, the unemployment rate in Ireland is 4 per cent and in Dublin its 3 per cent.

However, the point about electricity costs is a good one. In the U.K. they privatised their electricity industry some time ago. In Ireland, the state-owned ESB has a virtually monopoly. Obviously the privatised electricity in the U.K. has been far more successful at reducing costs and prices to consumers than the state-owned ESB has in Ireland. Nothing unusual in that. Think Ryanair and Aer Lingus. Clearly the ESB is greatly over-manned. Obviously the short-term solution is to introduce as much competition to the ESB as possible and as soon as possible, for example by providing a link to the U.K. national grid and allowing businesses to purchase electricity directly from the U.K., totally bypassing the ESB. In the longer term the ESB should be broken up and sold off to the private secor. Just think how much cheaper electricity would be if it was privatised and Michael O'Leary was running it.

Employers are allowed do what they want

by Hugh Murphy - Sacked by my union ex Belfast Docker

Wed Nov 29, 2006 20:11

When will the people of Ireland realise that they get the employers and union they deserve.

Employers are only here to make profit.

Union's are supposed to make the employers play fair and do the right thing by their workers.

Then along comes Siptu who copy chapter and verse the corruption of ITGWU, but are more clever. Instead of angering the workers by openly siding with the employers, they pretend to side with the membership and sell them out through so-called partnership.

I repeat workers get the UNION'S and employers they deserve.

Hugh Murphy

SIPTU

by john mcDermott - www.soldiersofdestiny.org

Wed Nov 29, 2006 21:40

SIPTU have done very well fo all public sector unions though.
Problem is those in the private sector will pay for it.

"It is time the government asked itself whether it is fair that workers at Cadbury in Coolock, or Wellman in Co Meath should have to pay with their jobs in order to keep the ESB’s permanent and pensionable workers in the style to which they have become accustomed in recent years."

Cathleen Barrington (Sunday Business Post)

unemployment in coolock

Wed Nov 29, 2006 21:53

"unemployment rate in Ireland is 4 per cent and in Dublin its 3 per cent"

But in parts of coolock it is 25%. Last year saw the closure of the Tayto factory with a loss of 98 jobs.

Unemployment

Wed Nov 29, 2006 22:58

First you were giving the unemployment rate as 25 per cent for Coolock. Now you are giving it as 25 per cent for 'parts of Coolock'. How small a unit do you want to measure? No doubt, if you search, you could find a house in Coolock with one person in it, and that person unemployed - you could then claim that in that part of Coolock the unemployment rate is 100 per cent. The fact is unemployment in Dublin is 3 or 4 per cent and Coolock is part of Dublin. Maybe you should inform the unemployed in Coolock that they don't need visas or work permits to get jobs elsewhere in Dublin. After all, tens of thousands of immigrants travel from across Europe to get jobs in Dublin each year, so it shouldn't be too much to ask people in Coolock to do the same.

bad logic

by guydebordisdead

Wed Nov 29, 2006 23:33

There are obviously different employment rates throughout the privileged and less privileged areas of Dublin. 3% is I am sure an average figure for the entire county. You only have to look at the queue outside the post office in Northside SC on a thursday to know Coolock has a much higher rate of unemployment than a lot of areas.

Euro value

Thu Nov 30, 2006 16:40

Jonh seems to be missing the point.

Irish people can't do the low paid jobs that migrants do because they have to spend the money earned in THIS COUNTRY.

Speak to any immigrant and they'll tell you - they're only here til they get a stake to set them up, back in the old country.

They live a very spartan life here knowing their euros are accumulating in a back account back home. This good value, means the Irish capitalist is using them as slave labour and lowering the rate for Irish workers.

When immigrants are paid the true value of their labour the capitalists won't want them and Irish workers can afford to travel across Dublin.

John seems to be spouting the capitalist class dogma which Norman Tebbit epitomized to workers in the 80's, "get on yer bike". Meaning go look for work.

John, and the capitalist class deliberately ignore the differential in spending power of the euro, between the homeland and here.

I am pro immigrant and am pro immigration. I hate to see decent people being used to undermine Irish workers.

Fair play... and fair pay for workers.

Hugh Murphy

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Cadburys to cut 450 jobs at Coolock factory

Comments (7 of 7)