Finian McGrath (Dublin Bay North, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy Sherlock for raising this important issue. I am replying on behalf of the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection, Deputy Regina Doherty.

As I understand it, Thermo Fisher Scientific has agreed to buy a manufacturing plant in Cork from GlaxoSmithKline, GSK. The sale sees the transfer of ownership of the site, including all facilities as well as business operations and approximately 400 employees, to Thermo Fischer Scientific. GSK employs approximately 1,700 people in Cork, Dungarvan, Dublin and Sligo. Last year it announced plans to close its Sligo plant by 2021, with the loss of 165 jobs. I am told that due to strategic changes in the GSK portfolio, the Cork site had been significantly under utilised and it became clear that it was no longer a competitive fit within GSK manufacturing network. As well as providing certainty for the workers, it is said that the sale will leave the site well positioned for future growth and development.

In terms of my responsibility as Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection, what is relevant here is the European Communities (Protection of Employees on Transfer of Undertakings) Regulations 2003. The regulations implement a 2001 EU Directive aimed at safeguarding the rights of employees in the event of a transfer of an undertaking, business or part of a business, to another employer as a result of a legal transfer or merger.

The regulations set out a number of obligations on both the transferor and the transferee in relation to consultation and the provision of information to employees. This must take place at least 30 days in advance of the actual transfer.

The main provisions of the regulations are as follows: all the rights and obligations of an employer under a contract of employment, including terms inserted by collective agreements other than pension rights, are transferred to the new employer on the transfer of the business or part thereof; the new employer must also continue to observe the terms and conditions of any collective agreement until they expire or are replaced; and an employee may not be dismissed by reason of the transfer alone. However, dismissals may take place for economic, technical or organisational reasons involving changes in the workforce. The regulations do not apply where the outgoing employer is subject to proceedings whereby he may be adjudicated bankrupt or wound up for reasons of insolvency, by order of the High Court. The position of the employees’ representatives is protected across a transfer. Both the outgoing and incoming employers are obliged to inform their respective employees’ representatives of the reasons for the transfer and the legal, social and economic implications of the transfer. Where there are no representatives, the employers must arrange for the employees to choose representatives for this purpose. I currently have no reason to believe that the companies involved will not comply with the legislation.

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