Redundancy terms for Indeed workers must be fair

Labour Leader and TD for Dublin Bay South, Ivana Bacik, has today called on management at Indeed to do right by its staff as it makes 225 workers redundant.

Deputy Bacik said:

“I want to express my solidarity – and that of the Labour Party – with workers at Indeed, as they endure a stressful consultation period with their employer, in advance of planned redundancies. Indeed employs 1,400 people in Ireland, a significant portion of whom are my constituents in Dublin Bay South. 225 of these workers are set to be let go, with 640 people’s livelihoods potentially affected. My thoughts are with all those who I know will be worrying and wondering how they will provide for themselves and their families, should their jobs being among those which are cut. As with other Big Tech firms, I have heard of individuals who fear they may be forced to leave the state if made redundant, due to the consequent revocation of their work visa.

“The statutory 30-day consultation period has only reached its mid-way point but, already, it would appear that Indeed’s management is already seeking to shut down the process. This is exacerbating the anxiety of staff. Moreover, internal documents uncovered by Donal MacNamee of the Business Post show that as many as 85% of Indeed employees are dissatisfied with how management has handled the process. I note that the severance package which has been proposed is significantly less generous than those which have been offered by other Big Tech firms in recent months. A profitable company like Indeed should provide the most generous possible safety net for all those who risk losing their livelihoods.

“In recent months, we have learned of new redundancies from Indeed, Google, Meta, Amazon, Twitter, PayPal, Stripe, Salesforce, Intel and Microsoft. The confirmed job losses combined are likely to amount to approximately one thousand people, with details of additional cuts still due to be announced. Clearly, the sector is in chaos in Ireland, and it is causing immense uncertainty for the thousands of people who rely on the industry for a living.

“It is not just workers who are directly employed by these companies which are affected either. The cumulative effect of these cuts are devastating for families and for people who are indirectly employed by the tech industry are too. Combined with spiralling food, fuel, energy, and housing prices, and the shameful lifting of the eviction ban at the end of this month, this is a very worrying time for working people in the sector, and indeed across the country. The Government continues to run a sizeable surplus, in no small part due to corporation tax receipts from Multinational Tech Companies. It is ironic, therefore, that those same corporations are causing such immense distress for their own employees.

“Workers from all sectors are reading weekly news of redundancies. There is palpable fear in the representations made to me by my constituents. Minister Coveney must back these workers, and send a message to employers and employees alike that all avenues must be explored to protect the livelihoods of working people in Ireland. In the Dáil today, I asked him to make strong representations to Indeed, to remind the company’s management of their statutory obligation to engage in good faith for the entire duration of the 30-day statutory consultation period. Furthermore, I reiterate the advice of Labour to all employees, which is that trade union membership is one of the best ways to mitigate against the worst effects of cutbacks by employers, and I commend the Financial Services Union for its strong representations on behalf of affected workers at Indeed.”