Schering-Plough job losses a bitter blow for local community
Issued : Thursday 9 September, 2010
Statement by Michael McCarthy TD
The announcement that 160 jobs at the Schering-Plough plant in Brinny are to go, is a massive blow to the workers and to the local economy.
As a former worker in the plant myself, my thoughts today are with my former colleagues and their families who now face a period of such uncertainty.
This area has lost many jobs in recent years in the construction, retail and manufacturing sectors, and these job losses are the last thing that local communities need.
Losses of this scale in this sector would indicate that the government strategy of developing and supporting employment is now in disarray.
While there is often a sense of resignation when we lose low-skilled jobs in the traditional manufacturing sector, these jobs are well paid positions, held by skilled and qualified workers, and are high in employment value chain. When we start haemorrhaging jobs like this, in an international export-driven sector, we really do have to sit up and take notice.
We know that each lost job costs the exchequer about €20,000 per year so prolonged period of unemployment for these workers is in nobody's interest. Unfortunately, if the Government's track record is anything to go by, we can't expect any action with regard to job creation for these workers, any time soon.
The Labour Party has proposed a series of job creation initiatives including:
- A Strategic Investment Bank which would use €2bn, less than 10% of the total, from the National Pension Reserve Fund to support commercial investments of up to €20bn in critical infrastructure projects and innovative start-ups and SME.
- An SME Working Capital Guarantee Scheme which would ensure that viable small and family businesses can get the loans they need.
- A €1.15bn jobs fund to support training schemes and labour intensive capital investment.
- A Graduate & Apprentice Programme which would guarantee relevant, work-based training and an opportunity to obtain new qualifications for all young people out of work.
It is time that Brian Cowen and his colleagues now gave unemployment the priority it deserves. Creating jobs is the key to getting our economy moving again. We need a far more proactive approach by the government who should take on board proposals the Labour Party has made.
