The mood was low key at the Apple plant in Cork yesterday because of the imminent loss of jobs. But news that the new iMac computer would be built partially at the facility could only be considered as a good thing, said Mr Adrian O'Connor, a shop steward.
"Its not all doom and gloom and we are still optimistic for the future. As a union, SIPTU is looking for the best possible package for its members and we are hoping that most of the 150 employees who will go, will be able to negotiate voluntary redundancy terms," he said.
He added: "Were it not for the iMac decision, things could have been a lot worse at this plant."
Ms Marcella Hickey, who has worked with Apple for the past seven years as an employee of the PCB facility, said that there was a great air of uncertainty in the plant.
While the 150 permanent jobs would go, people were not yet sure how Apple would deal with its temporary workforce - a workforce that is regularly hired and laid off again depending on demand for computer products. "Everyone is worried but we do not know what to make of the news so far."
Mrs Trisha O'Dea, a mother of two and an employee for 10 years on the PCB line, said she felt optimism that while things look bleak at the moment the company's circumstances would improve. Her husband Michael also works in the plant and together they have invested in a site near Hollyhill on which to build a new home.
She conceded that just now things looked a bit more uncertain. However, Mrs O'Dea said: "Apple has been a very good employer and that's what most of us think, who have been working here. Our conditions were extremely good and the company has done a lot for us."
An employee of seven years standing in the PCB section, Ms Linda Lorden, said she was hoping that things would work out and that as many jobs as possible would be saved.
"We thought this day would never come because since its arrival in Cork in 1988, Apple has continued to grow. It was a fantastic employer and everything down the years has been upbeat. We just did not think this day would come," she said.
