éirígí: For A Socialist Republic

Support Needed for Visteon Workers

21/04/09

Visteon workers fighting for their jobs éirígí spokesperson Seán Mac Brádaigh has called for the trade union leadership and the west Belfast community to stand behind the Visteon workers as legal moves to evict them commenced today (Tuesday).

KPMG, the administrators for the Visteon company, have applied to the Belfast High Court to have the workers evicted from the plant they have been occupying for more than a month.

The Belfast staff were informed at the end of March that they would be losing their jobs with immediate effect, and were offered derisory redundancy packages. They have since learned that their jobs have been moved to South Africa and are demanding that Visteon reopen the Belfast plant and reinstate the staff.

Seán said: “With legal action against the workers commencing, their campaign is at a crucial stage.

“In their attempts to evict the workers from the plant, KPMG, Visteon and Ford have displayed utter contempt for the livelihoods of 200 people, their families and an entire community.

“This contempt should be countered with a solid display of support for the men and women who are occupying Visteon. The community in west Belfast has already shown tremendous solidarity, both through marches and other acts of support that have not been publicised. éirígí is appealing for people to continue rallying behind the workers in the time ahead.

“The leadership of the trade unions also have a vital role to play. They have a responsibility to stand behind the workers in Visteon and offer them all the help that is required. They also have a responsibility to develop a practical program to enable people to fight against the job losses that have been taking place across the country.”

Seán concluded: “The issue at stake in the Belfast Visteon plant is simple. The jobs there did not become surplus to requirements. They were moved to a lower-wage economy to enable Visteon and Ford to secure larger degrees of profit.

“This move goes against any fair notion of how to run an economy and should be reversed. The workers in Belfast deserve their jobs back.”

Print-friendly version

	Donate to éirígí If you would like to support éirígí you can download a standing order form here
Donate to éirígí
	Email Us If you would like to be informed of website updates and current campaigns let us know by clicking here

	Download Download Adobe Reader here to view archived documents.

Join éirígí
If you are interested in joining éirígí or have any questions about membership e-mail eirigimembership@gmail.com or phone 00353 (0) 86 236 7298

“If you strike at, imprison, or kill us, out of our prisons or graves we will still evoke a spirit that will thwart you, and perhaps, raise a force that will destroy you! We defy you! Do your worst!”