The Clare People Archive

SHANNON’S 300 Aer Lingus work- ers are to be asked to ballot on all out industrial action after hearing they are to be axed from the company Or NeRO ee

Responding to management plans to outsource all ground operations and introduce a pay freeze, SIPTU National Industrial Secretary Gerry McCormack said the plan “repre- sents a fire sale of good quality jobs by a management that can see no fur- ther than the next quarter’s profit and loss sheet”.

“Nobody in the company will emerge unscathed from this exercise. Even those who keep their jobs will have to sign up to new contracts, ‘a merit and performance based cul- ture’ and a pay freeze until the end of 2009. The company has also told us that it will continue to seek further savings so that surviving staff face the prospect of further reductions in pay and conditions.”

SIPTU representatives were offi- cially informed of the clean sweep of eround staff at a meeting with man- agement yesterday. It will mean 1,500 people being axed from the company payroll, 300 of them at Shannon.

The core of the package will see all ground operations, including ca- tering, cleaning and check-in out- sourced to third-party agencies.

Cabin crew based in Heathrow and Shannon are also victims of the cuts which are part of a plan to stem mas-

sive losses experienced by the airline in the last twelve months.

All staff will be subject to a pay freeze until late 2009.

“We are perfectly willing to discuss savings with the company and will be

entering the process to be chaired by Kevin Foley of the Labour Relations Commission. But, as we have made clear from the start, we are totally opposed to outsourcing. That mes- sage does not seem to have gotten

through to the management team and therefore we are in the place we are in,’ Mc Cormack said.

Meetings with shop stewards were on-going last night as the details of the jobs carnage were clearly out-

lined.

A SIPTU spokesman said that cab- in crew are the only ones who will be offered the direct option of taking up other employment with the airline.

“Everything on the ground is being cut. There will be a voluntary redun- dancy package on offer, where staff can decide to take a lump sum and then seek re-employment with the new agency, but there is no guarantee that they will be taken on. The other option is to stay on and to transfer to the new employer but there is no guarantee with that of how long it will be before the new employer re- negotiates contracts, probably with lower wages.”

Clerical staff will largely not be facing job losses, but it’s thought that they will have to enter talks on new contracts with pay being perform- ance related and possibly a change in the pensions scheme which will pos- sibly be contribution driven.

The company has told the unions it wants the deal wrapped up by No- vember 30 and the new scheme ready to go by December 1, a dateline that would allow the airline to carry out the changes during the traditionally flat business period in January and onarles

CLARE finance professionals have given a guarded welcome to the Gov- ernment’s decision to become guar- antors for the banks.

Some are welcoming it as a means to make borrowing money easier while others hope it will reinstate confidence in the economy.

Mortgage adviser, Iggy Duffy of IFG Mortgages in Ennis described the decision as “one of the best re- sponses in the EU to the problem. It was vital to keep the economy

working and functioning. The conse- quences of letting a bank collapse are unthinkable. It will bring confidence in the economy and will make it a bit easier for ordinary people to access credit to buy a house or a car – the ordinary things”.

Duffy is also hopeful that an eased credit situation “will allow business- es to borrow and expand. That means more jobs and that’s good news for the economy.”

Financial advisor, Donal Carey be- lieves the real impact of the decision will be seen someway down the line.

“The banks won’t change their lend- ing criteria until they have seen the full implications of the legislation. But there is still money available if you meet their criteria. That criteria might be a bit tighter but that may not be any harm”’.

He feels that what is needed now is a confidence boost and hopefully the budget will bring that. It’s good the Government has stepped in to pro- tect the ordinary punters’ savings but this is the second time that the State has moved to save at least one of the banks and they should respond by

giving something back to their cus- tomers and taking a smaller profit’.

He says that a move which would help the building trade in the budget would be one that would benefit the wider economy.

‘A lot of people are employed in the building trade and anything which will put confidence back in the prop- erty market is good. There has been a fall in house prices but that is re- ally putting house prices where they ought to be. A couple on a reasonable income can now get a loan to buy a house in Ennis’, he said.

FOCUS in the mid-west needs to be on positive developments which the region has seen and building on those successes, the new mid-west president of IBEC says.

Despite a disastrous year for tour- ism, the Cityjet Shannon to Charles deGaulle route is so successful that the airline is planning to double it’s capacity and everything that can be done to boost tourism in the region must be done. This was the key mes- sage delivered by incoming presi- dent, Dr Maria Hinfelaar at the AGM of the regional body last week.

‘It has been an extremely difficult tourism season. The number of tour- ists on the ground and the level of spend and income in the region is down on last year. The region has witnessed a significant drop in bed nights with US golf business to the region down significantly. There is little doubt that access to Ireland, particularly for US visitors through Heathrow was very beneficial to the region and we have lost significantly there,’ Dr Hinfelaar said.

“In the midst of all these impeding factors, everything possible must be done to protect the industry. There are a number of positive develop- ments regionally, which give rise to

optimism for the future,” she said, pointing to the success of the twice daily Cityjet service.

But while it is recognised that this connection to Charles de Gaulle “is a major achievement more connectiv- ity is needed. We know that Shannon Airport and its partners are work- ing hard to achieve this and given the current difficulties in the airline industry this will be a challenging task,’ she noted.

Upbeat about the future of the re- gion, Dr Hinfelaar said, ‘We are looking forward to Shannon becom- ing the first airport in Europe with full US pre-clearance facilities. It will give us a unique and competitive advantage, which must be capitalised on,’ Dr Hinfelaar added.

The IBEC president also pointed to opportunities which could be de- veloped between Shannon and the Middle and Far East and the need to strengthen US relations.

“It is time to focus on what we have; several of Ireland’s top attrac- tions, major industrial players and educational institutions are based here. A positive attitude is needed and is one that will pay dividends,” Dr Hinfelaar said.

A TOTAL of eight people have died in drowning incidents on the River Fergus since 2004, according to the figures revealed by the water safety officer with Clare County Council.

Liam Griffin addressed members at yesterday’s meeting of Ennis Town Council along with the Chief Fire Officer for Clare, Adrian Kelly. Mr Griffin told the council that in some cases, the drownings were as a result of suicide.

He said, “I don’t think it’s possi- ble to rescue a person when they are

drowning. Unless, you had someone on the scene when it is happening, who is a top class swimmer. People drown in seconds, maybe minutes. When you hear of people getting rescued from rivers, it’s usually be- cause they have hung onto a branch or climbed up onto a bank.”

Mr Griffin outlined to the council the training methods employed to equip volounteers working with the Clare Civil Defence.

He also pledged his support to any review of existing procedures for water safety in Ennis.

“If the council feels there should

be a review, maybe replacing or up- grading water safety equipment, we would support that.”

Mr Griffin also called for people to respect life rings placed on the Fer- gus, saying that abuse and vandalism was a bigger issue in Ennis than any- where else in Clare.

Mr Griffin and Mr Kelly spoke at the council in order to clarify the specific roles of the different ele- ments that make up the rescue serv- ices in Clare.

Their appearance was prompted by comments made by Cllr Frankie Neylon (Ind) at the September meet-

ing of Ennis Town Council.

At the time Cllr Neylon, told the chamber that he had received a phone call from a member of the Fire serv- ices in Clare, alleging that the chief fire officer threatened to fire staff that entered a river to rescue a person from drowning.

Mr Kelly has since strongly reject- ed making the statement and re-iter- ated his stance in no-uncertain terms MK KOr Ne

“T never said anything like that and I never would,” the chief fire officer Cr ALOR

He said that members of the fire

services are provided with water awareness training and co-ordinate closely with other agencies on oc- casions when a body is reported to have entered the water.

“It is my responsibility to make sure firemen don’t get injured and get home to their wives,’ said Mr th

He added, “We are a fire and res- cue service not a water rescue serv- ice.’ Mayor of Ennis Peter Considine (FF) led tributes to Clare’s rescue services, with Independent council- lor Taiwoo Matthew calling their vo- lounteer work a “noble campaign”’.

A PROPOSAL to cut 300 Aer Lin- gus jobs in Shannon Airport, has left staff worried for their future and also led a local TD to suggest that the distinguishable green uniform is “a thing of the past” in Shannon.

Shocked staff were told by union representatives that the airline was proposing to out-source all jobs in Shannon Airport with the exception of maintenance. This would include cabin crew, ground handling and cargo staff.

In a two and a half hour meeting with management in Dublin, staff union reps were told the cuts were a result of oil costs, the economy and softening bookings. Up to 300 pen- sionable jobs are proposed to go in Shannon.

“2009 is predicted to be a bad year. The Americans are not travelling. We see that ourselves,’ said one staff member.

“We have seen this before in 2001 and 2004,” said another.

The company will be offering vol- untary redundancies and crews will

be out-sourced and supported by bas- es in New York, Boston and Dublin.

In total 1,500 jobs are proposed to be out-sourced and inevitably lost to Aer Lingus. Jobs will also go in Cork and Dublin.

Aer Lingus management set a dead- line of November for the implemen- tation of the ©74 million cost-cutting programme including a €©50 million cut from staff costs.

They also said €14 million would have to come from a reduction in ad- vertising and distribution costs, air- port costs and professional fees, and

€10m from reducing the airline’s long haul aircraft fleet from nine to eight.

“We are going to continue fighting. Even to save 100 jobs,” said one up- set worker.

Before the official announcement was made, the union’s general presi- dent, Jack O’Connor had appealed to the Government to establish a “threshold of decency” in the avia- tion business where, he said workers wages were being driven through the ground.

Speaking at the union’s regional

conference in Tralee, he predicted the union would mount “the siffest resistance possible” to any attempt to outsource the 1,500 Aer LIngus jobs.

He added that what is happening in Aer Lingus could no longer be isolated from what is happening in aviation in Ireland in general and it would feel the pinch.

“It is ironic that against a back- ground of billions being spent to bail out the bankers…that people who are paying taxes are being fed to the wolves,” he told the conference.

THE number of people signing on the live register in Clare is up by al- most half on the same time last year, the latest shock figures have shown.

The latest Central Statistics Office figures show that numbers signing on are up by 1,940, bringing the unem- ployment total from 4,074 last Sep- tember to 6,014 this September.

The confirmation of the jobs crisis emerged as staff at Aer Lingus in Shannon were living under threat of 300 further jobs being axed.

No area of the county escaped the slump. Unemployment in Ennis was

up by 43.7 per cent with an additional 1,069 people signing on. In Ennisty- mon an extra 317 people have signed on since last year, bringing the job- less total there to 906 while in Kil- rush, 226 extra people are now on dole payments, bringing the unem- ployment figure for the area to 799. Tulla has seen the largest percentage unemployment increase, at 70.7 per cent and extra 328 unemployed mak- ing a total of 792 people without jobs and signing on.

The latest figures for Clare were re- leased as the latest quarterly ESRI re- port yesterday predicted that 14,000 jobs will have gone by the end of this

year and next year will see the loss of 33,000 more. “The rate of unem- ployment is expected to average 6.1 percent in 2008 and to jump further in 2009, averaging 8 percent. The net migratory outflow in 2009 is now expected to be 30,000,” the report predicts.

Fine Gael TD Pat Breen, comment- ing on the release of the CSO Live Register Figures for 2008, said that the rate of increase in the Under 25 Category is particularly worrying with a 65.1 per cent increase over the same 12-month period.

“Every year, the September Live Register figures reflect the fact than

students and others return to full- time education so we must look at the latest figures is this context. How- ever, when we compare September 2007 to September 2008 the figures tell a very different story. What is particularly worrying is the number of under 25s on the Live Register for that same 12-month period. 65.1% increase from 762 in September 2007 to 1,258 this month.’

“T am now calling on the Govern- ment to show the same urgency in dealing with this crisis as they have shown in dealing with the bank- ing crisis over the past few days’, he Cr HLee

JOBS are under threat in Ennis with the announcement that the hotels in the Dunne Hotel group are to go into liquidation.

The Woodstock Hotel, which cur- rently has 39 people on the payroll, is one of three hotels for which a liqui- dator has been appointed.

It has also been announced that Cronan Nagle Construction, one of Clare’s best known buildiung com- panies is facing liquidation.

Sources at the hotel said that it is keeping its doors open, with business as usual and all existing bookings are being honoured.

Sources have also said that while

staff are very concerned about the situation, they are hoping that the public in Ennis will support the busi- ness going forward.

The businesses have been in ex- aminership since June and the High Court has now been told they have no prospect of survival.

The hotels facing going out of busi- ness are the Woodstock in Ennis, Patrick Punches in Limerick and the Clybaun in Galway.

Other hotels in the group, the Two Mule Inn in Limerick and the Ridge- pool in Ballina are to have a receiver appointed by the Bank Of Scotland, who are their main creditors.

The court was asked to take no ac- tion in relation to the sixth concern,

the Seno Hotel and Property Ltd as this would have a reasonable pros- pect of survival.

Price-Waterhouose Coopers have been appointed as provisional liqui- dators and Mr Justice Barry White made the matter returnable until October 13 next after counsel for the exmainer, Rossa Fanning asked that the hotel be allowed to continue in operation to honour any existing bookings.

The family-owned business, run by Brendan and Hilda Dunne ran into difficulties last year.

The hotels suffered a serious down- turn with the fall-off of American visitors. The firm has said that the weakening of the dollar, a strong

euro and the emergence of cheaper holiday destinations has seen the number of Americans coming to Ire- land drop dramatically.

Meanwhile, Cronan Nagle Con- struction, the Clare building contrac- tors who worked on the ESB power plant at Moneypoint as well as 400 sustainable houses in Clare is to go into liquidation.

The directors of the company, which was formed in 1999, have called a meeting of creditors for later this month, when it 1s expected the business will be wound up.

The company, which had also worked on projects in Nigeria, could not be reached yesterday for a com- ment.

MORE than four and a half million euro has been lost to the county’s coffers during the first eight months of this year as planning applications plummet.

From January to August 2007 Clare County Council was paid almost €6 million in development

contributions. This year develop- ment contributions

paid to the local plan- ning authority during the same period fell by 78 per cent to almost €1.3 million.

These Development Contributions of Sec- tion 48 levies are paid on all planning applica- tions granted – from one-off houses to major developments.

Planning applications in the county have decreased by 42 per cent from AF Welet-D mya KO a Uelcab nc mA OD ECMA (or)

Clare County Council has claimed, however, that as development contri- bution income is applied to capital projects it has no impact on revenue.

This is a point challenged by Clare County Councillor PJ Kelly (FF).

The west Clare councillor who has been critical of planning issues in Clare, said he believes that the re- duction in the planning applications is not solely as a result of the reces-

sion.

“Many of the main developments have quit the county because of the continuous difficulties with plan- ning,” he said.

“Difficulties with rural planning have caused many to throw in the towel and just give up,” he main- tained.

“The absence of any industrial policy which is replaced by a rural sterilisation programme has left us with a zero rate of lao (oy oyentoy imum temp alon- it areas,’ he said.

In response to a mo- tion by Cllr Kelly to be tabled at Monday’s adjourned meeting of the September meet-

ing, the council also pointed out that it is employing less staff in the plan- ning section due to the reduction in activity. Five planning staff members have not been replaced this year.

“While the number of applications and staff has decreased this year it is not intended that the level (of service) would be reduced,” the reply said.

Cllr Kelly remained critical of the sector however. “One would expect with a decrease in work load we would have an increase in Service. This has not happened,” he said.

the response time to emergency call outs in Clare took more than one hour in 35 cases dur- ing the first four months of that year. The HSE then claimed that the loca- tion of the call in relation to the near- est available ambulance at the time of the call or the difficulty in finding a location due to incorrect directions or a wrong address could be behind WeoRelo EAE The availability of ambulances came to the fore again in the past

year when three west Clare babies were born on the side of the road or traumatic emergency circumstances at home.

The unavailability of an ambulance in Kilrush on the busy August Bank Holiday weekend again raised ques- tions about the recourses of the serv- ice.

That weekend – one of the busiest for the west of the county – the am- bulance service in Kilrush was with- drawn and was covered by Ennis 44 kilometres away.

During the weekend a _ young woman was killed in a car accident in Kilkee, as well as the usual call outs during the busy peak tourism ereu (elem

A HSE spokesperson yesterday evening confirmed to

There are two solutions other than those suggested by Clare County Council. Remove the rock-armour wall and restore the original right of way that has the disadvantage of ex- posing the general public to golf balls in flight. Once again the real solution is simple and relatively inexpensive. Adequate parking between the golf club road and the L61041 where they

run parallel to each other and to the left of the L61401. A roundabout at the junction of the golf club and the road; remove the rock-armour wall and put in a tunnel under the fairway for approximately 75 metres.