294 jobs to go at Intel plant in Leixlip

Intel has announced that it is cutting 294 jobs at its plant in Leixlip, Co Kildare.

In a statement issued this evening, the company said the compulsory redundancies were 'regrettable' but were driven by a reduction in demand for its products.

Reacting to the news of the job losses, Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan said that while every job lost is of concern to the Government, he had been assured the company is here to stay.

Minister Lenihan said he discussed the matter with the Chief Executive of Intel yesterday evening and he assured him that Intel will remain as a permanent feature of the industrial landscape in Ireland.

The Minister said that, like many companies, Intel is under severe international stress and competition and it has had to discontinue some older lines of production, not just in Ireland but in other parts of the world as well.

In the first quarter of this year, Intel announced the closure of six factories in the US, China, Malaysia and the Philippines with a loss of up to 6,000 jobs.

At that time, the company sought 200-300 redundancies on a voluntary basis from across the Intel Ireland workforce. That programme closed in May 2009.

Management says it will engage in a process of consultation over the next number of weeks to determine which employees will be specifically affected by this action.

Intel employees 4,500 people at its Leixlip plant and a further 300 at its Shannon facility.

A company spokesperson said it was consolidating two of its factories at its Leixlip site because the equipment was outdated and it was producing products for which the demand was no longer sustainable.

However, the company said it remains committed to Ireland and it did not plan any further job losses.

Intel will now begin a 12-week consultation process with the affected staff.