Mary White (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

It is timely and appropriate that Senators extend our good wishes for a successful outcome to the discussions on the future of Bausch and Lomb in Waterford which are taking place this week under the auspices of the Labour Relations Commission. Our esteemed Leader of the Seanad is more conscious than any of us of the implications of these discussions for the 1,100 employees of the plant and the economy of his home city of Waterford. The indications are encouraging. Unions and management have entered the discussions in a spirit of good faith. The mother company of Bausch and Lomb, which is a Canadian company called Valeant, is seeking to lay off 200 people and to reduce salaries of the remaining employees by 20%. I want the Seanad to send a message of good wishes to the people who are taking part in these discussions and that we would particularly welcome a written assurance from the CEO, Mr. Michael Pearson, that the company is committed to maintaining its presence in the city provided it gets the savings needed.
Some 30 years ago, Travenol in Castlebar was threatened with closure, which would mean 700 job losses. I was involved in this issue and I recall the magnificent teamwork between local people, the staff of the company and its chief executive. They worked relentlessly for six months to save the company and were ultimately successful. I hope this will happen in Waterford. However, there is a caveatto this matter because the parent company of Bausch and Lomb also wants to take over Allergan in County Mayo, which is the largest manufacturer of Botox in the world. The County Mayo operation employs 900 people. We will all be watching closely the good faith exhibited by the owners of Allergan. Valeant has already made three bids to take over Allergan.
We should also condemn the New York Senator, Charles Schumer, who has put pressure on Valiant to move the Waterford operation and all of the jobs to Rochester in New York. Waterford will be devastated if there is not a successful outcome to the negotiations. We as a nation have to resist any takeover of Allergan by Valeant.