Michael Lowry (Tipperary North, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for his response. I call on him and his Department to convey our genuine concerns and fears to the C&C Group and its head personnel. The C&C Group management should be told to be upfront and honest with its loyal and dedicated workforce. The management should participate in meaningful dialogue and share information with the people working for them. The C&C Group needs to understand that rather than simply number crunching, it is dealing with real people who have jobs and careers.

It is dealing with the livelihood of families and their futures. Staff at Borrisoleigh and Clonmel must be treated with the dignity and respect they deserve and have earned over the years of service. The Minister and all State agencies must convey Members' concerns at the highest level. One aspect of this development about which the Minister of State's Department should be concerned and of which it should be conscious is that a private corporation, C&C Group, is stating it is easier and cheaper to provide administrative services from Belfast and that it proposes to move administrative jobs from Borrisoleigh, Clonmel and Dublin to Belfast. This surely must set alarm bells ringing throughout the Department and, if nothing else, should raise a serious question about the motivation behind this move by C&C Group.

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