Dell: the knock-on effects
Evidence of the knock on effects of Dell’s decision to move it’s manufacturing to Lodz in Poland are starting to show.
First up is news that Limerick County Council can expect a €1m drop in rates received as a result of the move. Dell pays in the region of €500,000 in rates to the county council while associated companies make up the other €500,000. This represents nearly a five percent drop in rates being collected by the council in 2010.
Chairman of Limerick County Council, John Gallaghue, told the Limerick Leader that the loss of rates from Dell and other companies could affect services provided by the council. “It is not ideal. In fact, the whole Dell scene is a horrendous bloody scene, and of course the loss of €1m in rates could possibly lead to a curtailment of services unless more creative ways are found to bring in extra revenue to the council,” he is quoted as saying to the paper.
One of the associated companies to Dell also looks like it is going to fold up it’s tent in Limerick is RR Donnelly. While the company has not yet confirmed any lay-offs, trade union SIPTU, which represents workers at the plant, claim that employees of RR Donnelly have been told by management of the company’s plans to leave Limerick, with the loss of 400 jobs.
RR Donnelly’s business in Limerick is solely dependent on Dell.
“All the work that is carried out at RR Donnelly is for Dell, From what we have been told by our members, it seems that they will be phasing out jobs there on much the same timeline as they are at Dell over the next 12 months.” said a spokesperson for SIPTU.
“Although we have union members at RR Donnelly, at the moment we don’t have recognition from the company. However, if there are collective redundancies, they are legally obliged to discuss redundancy packages with the unions.”
Meanwhile, Dell themselves came under renewed attack over it’s “pure greed” and inadequate redundancy package.
Socialist party’s Joh Higgins said in a statement from the party released today, “”Dell has paid very low wages. Personal and family lives have had to be sacrificed to work 12 hour shifts and night shifts just to get by. A union was not allowed. This regime of exploitation made EMF-3 the most efficient Dell plant in the world, helping to bring Dell from a small company in 1991 to the giant it is now. But the only thanks the workers get is to be thrown onto the dole, with a pitiful redundancy of a year’s basic salary for someone who could have worked there for 10 or more years!”
“Instead of sham meetings with management, Dell workers should have their own meeting to discuss what can be done. Any campaign should be about jobs, that what people need. But even when it comes to redundancies, getting organised and taking action can often drastically improve redundancy terms. Recently workers in Calcast in Derry and Swissco in Cork occupied their factories and successfully won better redundancies payments. Dell workers should consider fighting not just to win better redundancy payents, but to try force the government to nationalise the factory and machinery.”