Sinéad Gibney (Dublin Rathdown, Social Democrats)
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86. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the reason pre-1992 former employees of a company (details supplied) who were made redundant and not offered options with regards to their pension entitlements in the 1990s, are not entitled to compensation for same, in accordance with EU Directive 2008/94/EC; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [62259/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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This issue relates to a group of former workers who left the service of Waterford Crystal between 1990 and 1992 under a redundancy arrangement. At the time of the redundancy, the workers received a refund of their pension contributions relating to their service in the relevant company pension schemes up to that time. As a result, they then ceased to be members of the pension scheme and no longer had any rights or entitlements under the schemes. This was a private agreement entered into by the workers themselves.

Separately, in 2010, a legal action was taken by a group of former Waterford Crystal workers against the State following the insolvency of the Waterford Crystal Factory and Staff pension schemes. The case (known as the Hogan Case) related to the failure of the State to transpose into Irish law the provisions of the Insolvency Protection Directive. The Directive requires Member States to ensure that necessary measures are taken to protect employees’ occupational pension scheme benefits where an employer becomes insolvent.

In 2015, a mediated settlement was reached between the parties to that legal action. The mediated settlement applied to all persons who were members of the Waterford Crystal Staff and Factory pension schemes on the date of wind-up of the schemes (31st March 2009). In total, 1,774 scheme members are covered by the agreement. The total costs to the Exchequer arising from the mediated agreement were estimated at €253 million.

No member of the schemes with preserved benefits on the date of wind-up was excluded from the mediated settlement in respect of their preserved benefits. Those former employees of Waterford Crystal who previously took redundancy and received refunds of pension contributions were not eligible to be included in the mediated settlement as they had no preserved benefits in the scheme.

The question regarding the provision of leaving service options is one for the employer and the trustees rather than the State, and is not an issue that gives rise to protections under the Insolvency Directive.

Following a meeting with some of those affected in September 2024, the former Taoiseach requested the Attorney General to review the claims being made, including the allegations around the failure to provide leaving service options. The Attorney General advised that there is no basis on which the State could be obliged to compensate the members concerned or otherwise intervene.

While I appreciate the disappointment of those who find themselves in this situation, this arises from personal decisions they took when they were offered redundancy and the terms they agreed at that time. Other workers did not avail of that option and were subsequently provided for under separate arrangements. The request that the terms be equalised is not a matter that the State can resolve, nor would it be appropriate for the State to use taxpayers funds do so.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.