Cadbury factory picket 'to continue' as talks get under way

Join our community

Unions have vowed to keep picketing a Cadbury factory over fears further jobs will be outsourced.
Talks between Siptu and Unite representatives and owners Mondelez Ireland will begin this morning after 17 positions at the Coolock factory were reassigned.

[featured-img]

More than 200 workers went on strike, disrupting production of some of the company’s most iconic chocolate bars such as Dairy Milk, Twirl and Flake amid concerns more permanent roles could go the same way.
The scheduled talks will be chaired by mediators from the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC).
Unite regional coordinating officer Richie Browne warned that the move to outsource 17 core roles in Coolock would herald a “move away from good permanent jobs to precarious work”.
“The unions have put forward proposals which would achieve productivity improvements and cost savings with no loss of permanent jobs,” he said.
“We welcome the intervention of the WRC, and hope for a meaningful engagement.”
Siptu sector organiser John Dunne said: “Our union representatives have decided to attend these talks in the hope that a resolution can be found to this dispute.
“However, the work stoppage at the plant will continue tomorrow and the pickets outside the plant will remain in operation.”
Cadbury in Coolock has been producing chocolate bars for five decades for the Irish, UK and other international markets.