Brian O'Shea (Waterford, Labour)
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I call on the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise and Employment to make sure that she and the Government pursue every avenue to ensure the continuation of Waterford Crystal as a complete entity, to include manufacturing, to resolve all issues surrounding the pension fund and to deal with the difficulties that have arisen with regard to severance payments for former employees of Waterford Crystal.

The uncertainty surrounding Waterford Crystal is precarious for the city, the county, the entire region, and the Government and the various public agencies must pull out all the stops to ensure that company remains in business and the maximum number of jobs are retained. The problems that have come to light in recent times at Waterford Crystal are as complex as they are manifold. I am greatly concerned for the plight of the hundreds of workers who accepted voluntary redundancy from the company late last year. Under the arrangement, their redundancy payment was to be paid in instalments, but since the closure of the plant, those payments were first reduced and then stopped, which is completely unacceptable. These workers entered into this agreement in good faith on the understanding that payment would be made in full. Now, just a few short months later, they have been left high and dry. The Minister must reassure them that their redundancy payments will be honoured in full. A way needs to be found to make sure these people will not be left out of pocket as a result of a set of circumstances that was completely out of their control.

There are also major concerns regarding the pensions of current and some former Waterford Crystal employees. People with decades of service to the company, who made pension contributions, have been told that they may not receive their entitlements. Employees left the company last year when reaching 58 years of age on the agreement that a bond would be purchased by the company to provide them with pensions for three and three quarter years until their 63rd birthdays when their company pension scheme payments would commence, but they found out the bonds had not been purchased. This commitment must be honoured in full. The Minister must ensure workers and retired employees are fully protected in order that people who have an entitlement obtain it.

Last year, the Government guaranteed the banks with the backing of the public sector pension fund, but it refused to implement a guarantee for pension schemes, as recommended. Had it done so, the Waterford Crystal pensions would be secured. In these circumstances, it is unconscionable that people who paid into a scheme may lose the benefits due because of Government inaction. The failure to guarantee the Waterford scheme will add to the devastating consequences of the company going into receivership. Retired workers also contribute to the regional economy and their incomes are also under threat. This must be a cause of great distress to them. There is no good reason the safety of their pensions cannot be confirmed.

While the closure of the plant last week was a huge blow to all involved with the company, every effort must now be made to recover the company from receivership with as much employment as possible intact. Waterford Crystal has been through a great deal during the 20 years or so. It was a terrible shock for employees to learn last week that the doors would be shut and they would not return to work this week. Nothing prepares people for such a development and they rightly hoped this turn of events could be avoided.

However, there remains some prospect of securing a future for the company, which involves retaining the visitor centre, manufacturing and office employment at Kilbarry. To this end, when I was informed about the closure, I made contact with the receiver to urge him to continue efforts to sell the operation as a single entity in order that maximum employment can be retained in Waterford. Tremendous value remains in the Waterford Crystal brand worldwide and the skills base and manufacturing infrastructure built up over many years at Waterford is also of considerable value.

The Labour Party once again pledges its full support in securing full political support for any effort to safeguard the future of Waterford Crystal. I have fully briefed my own party leader, Deputy Gilmore, in this regard and I have contacted the offices of the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment to urge them to input positively to the recovery process. After all, Waterford Crystal is an important Irish company, which has contributed hugely to the economy, both in direct taxation and in generating tourism visitor numbers.

When I was first elected to the House 20 years ago, 3,300 people were employed by Waterford Crystal at three locations. To see the company reach its current low point is deeply upsetting for everyone who cares about Waterford, but I remain convinced that efforts to save employment at Kilbarry will not be time wasted. The symbolism of Waterford Crystal for the people of the Waterford area and beyond is huge. It is an iconic and international brand, which must be saved with maximum job retention for Waterford, the full securing of pension rights and full honouring of severance agreements.

Billy Kelleher (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Deputy for raising the matter. Every Deputy has faced similar sad situations where iconic companies such as Waterford Crystal face closure or liquidation because of a changed economic environment. I understand the concerns of the Deputy, the workers and their families and everyone in the south-east region. The Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment apologises as she is unable to be present but she has been directly involved in the ongoing situation in Waterford for some time. Both the Minister and her senior officials have engaged in a number of meetings in this regard. We are all extremely anxious to ensure a satisfactory outcome to the current scenario.

The company went into receivership recently. Mr. David Carson was appointed as the receiver and the Minister has met him on a number of occasions over the past month. Due to a lack of funds, he felt he had no option but to cease production last Friday. It is important to emphasise that the company is in receivership but not liquidation. Mr. Carson is in discussions with a number of parties who have expressed interest in becoming involved in the future of the company. He is making every effort to negotiate a sale that would secure the maximum number of jobs in Waterford and the continuation of Waterford Crystal as a going concern. It is essential that his negotiations with interested parties can be brought to a conclusion at the earliest opportunity, as time is not on our side in resolving this situation.

Waterford Crystal Limited is a subsidiary of Waterford Wedgwood plc and employed several thousand people at its peak. The group engaged in several rounds of raising finance in recent years to recapitalise the loss-making operations in the group, which included Waterford Crystal. However, insufficient earnings due to changing market conditions, a weak US dollar and the economic downturn in the company's largest market — the US — resulted in defaults in debt servicing and repayments. On 5 January 2009, the company asked that its shares be suspended from trading on the Irish Stock Exchange and it said some of the group's Irish and UK subsidiaries had to go into receivership and administration. On 30 January, the receiver concluded that the company was not in a position to continue meeting the current payroll cost in respect of the workforce. Accordingly, Mr. Carson decided that he was left with no option but to immediately commence giving notice of redundancy to a large portion of the workforce.

Every effort is being made, and will continue to be made, to ensure that the company continues to operate as a trading entity. Should this not prove possible and redundancies arise, I assure Deputies that my Department will be ready to assist the employees of Waterford Crystal in accessing their statutory employment entitlements under the redundancy and insolvency payments schemes. The purpose of the redundancy payments scheme is to compensate workers under the Redundancy Payments Acts 1967 to 2007 for the loss of their jobs by reason of redundancy. Insolvency legislation is also administered by my Department and provides for the payment of certain wage-related entitlements owed to employees such as arrears of wages-salaries, sick pay, holiday pay, pension contributions and minimum notice. In the context of pension contributions, the scheme provides for payment of contributions deducted from an employee in the 12 months prior to insolvency, which remain unpaid, and any contributions due to be paid by the employer into the scheme in the 12 months prior to the insolvency but which were not paid. That is the sole purpose of the insolvency payments scheme as regards pension contributions, which contrasts with the more general issue of pension funds.

Regulatory responsibility for the oversight of pensions funding lies with the Department of Social and Family Affairs under the auspices of the Pensions Board. The Government is conscious of the pressures on employers sponsoring pension schemes and scheme trustees, arising from the significant losses incurred by pension funds over the past year. While measures were announced last December to ease the funding pressures on pension schemes, the Government is considering a comprehensive framework for future pensions, which will set out a new model that will aim to secure the future of social welfare, private, occupational and public service pensions.

These are difficult and uncertain times for the workers at Waterford Crystal. We all cling to hope in these challenging times. However, Waterford Crystal is an iconic brand worldwide and, at its peak, it provided gainful employment for up to 3,000 people. I am hopeful a satisfactory solution will emerge from the ongoing discussions in the coming days.