Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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4. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if he has been contacted or engaged by a company (details supplied) in respect of job losses at the company; if so, the nature of those discussions; if he is satisfied that the company has complied with communication protocols in respect of redundancies and-or requests to take unpaid leave; if he will clarify the obligation of a company to inform him of plans to implement a voluntary time-off programme for staff; and whether they are obliged to comply with the request. [61239/22]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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Following the release of its third-quarter results in late October, Intel announced it would seek cost reductions in 2023 due to market decline. This included reducing operational expenditure and a right-sizing of its global workforce. I understand Intel is engaging with staff and offering voluntary unpaid leave options to its staff as part of this cost review process.

My Department has not received a collective redundancy notification in relation to potential redundancies at Intel. For clarity, there is no requirement under the Protection of Employment Act 1977 for employers to notify the Minister of offers of periods of voluntary unpaid leave to employees.

Section 12 of the Protection of Employment Act 1977 provides that employers proposing a collective redundancy must notify the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment of the proposed collective redundancy. Collective redundancies arise where, during any period of 30 consecutive days, the employees being made redundant are:

- 5 employees where 21-49 are employed,

- 10 employees where 50-99 are employed,

- 10% of the employees where 100-299 are employed,

- 30 employees where 300 or more are employed.

I recently met with the CEO of Intel who confirmed that the company remains committed to Ireland. Intel is a significant economic contributor to Ireland and an important regional employer to Co. Kildare, with the majority of its 5,000 strong workforce employed at the Leixlip campus. Intel and Ireland have a great relationship since the company first came to Ireland in 1989, and the company has made significant investments in our country over the past 30 years. The company is eager to maintain its manufacturing talent which is a key function of its operations here now and into the future. Officials in my Department, through IDA Ireland, engage with the company on an ongoing basis and will continue to support Intel with their future plans in Ireland.