Around 364 Irish-based jobs are under threat at cloud computing company VMWare.
It follows the recent acquisition of the firm by semiconductor company Broadcom.
VMWare employs more than 1,000 people in Ireland with the bulk of them based at its site in Ballincollig in Cork.
The proposed redundancies were raised in the Dáil today by Solidarity and Socialist Party TD Mick Barry who described the news as a 'Christmas bombshell'.
"It is a devastating blow to the workforce, the vast majority of whom are based at Ballincollig in Cork city," Mr Barry said.
In response, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said that yesterday VMWare informed Minister for Enterprise Simon Coveney of potential redundancies in Ireland.
"The company has advised us that it will seek to avoid the proposed redundancies where possible and will explore that in the consultation process with staff which will begin this week," Mr Varadkar said.
"The IDA will work with the local leadership team to understand the skills profile of the affected employees and to match that with existing or target client skills requirements," he added.
In a statement, Mr Coveney described the announcement as a "significant blow" to the workforce in VMWare as a result of a merger.
"My thoughts are with the workers and their families," Mr Coveney said.
"The IDA will now engage with the company as the collective redundancy process progresses through the 30-day consultation period."
"It is important to note that the workers involved are highly skilled and are likely to be sought after elsewhere in the broader economy," he said.
"There are also a range of Government supports available to anyone who is being made redundant, including assisting with appropriate training and development opportunities and income supports," he added.
VMWare opened its first Irish office in Cork in 2005.
In June last year, it announced it was expanding its presence in Ireland with the creation of 205 new jobs in Dublin by 2025.
Last month, computer chipmaker Broadcom completed its $69bn acquisition of VMWare, concluding one of the biggest ever takeover deals in the technology sector.
The acquisition was first announced in May 2022 but was delayed as it had to receive approval from regulators around the world.
Broadcom has been contacted for comment.
The proposed job cuts at VMWare were first reported by The Echo and The Irish Examiner.
Sinn Féin spokesperson on Enterprise, Trade, Employment and Workers' Rights, Louise O’Reilly described the job losses as 'a devastating blow'.
"As an IDA supported company, it is incumbent on the government to engage with VMWare to do everything that can be done to ensure job losses are minimised during the consultation period that will now follow this announcement," Ms O’Reilly said.
