Staff at Roche in Clarecastle can breathe a sigh of relief today after escaping a major jobs cull by the pharmaceutical giant.
As part of an overhaul of its research activities, Roche is set to close a plant in the US, cut its workforce by a thousand, while its head of drug research is set to be replaced.
However, a company spokesperson has confirmed to Clare FM that the near 400 workers in Clarecastle and the manufacturing plant itself will be unaffected.
There were real fears that operations in Clarecastle could be shut down following a review of Roche’s global sites after testing for a new cholesterol drug – due to be manufactured here- was halted.
However there’s good news for staff at the Clare site today as the pharmaceutical giant confirms to Clare FM that the 225 permanent staff – and around 160 contract workers here will be unaffected by a major overhaul of its operations
No manufacturing site will be hit but Roche is set to close a research plant in Nutley New Jersey – and move its activities to Germany and Switzerland in an effort to clamp down on costs – The head of its pharmaceutical research, will also leave the company at the end of this week.
The changes will see a thousand job cuts implemented but this will have no impact on its Irish operations
Clare Fine Gael Government TD Joe Carey says the retention of the Clarecastle plant and the employees is fantastic news for the entire county and proves the worth of staff at the Clare facility.
The managing director of Roche Ireland Sven Hauptmann is set to meet with staff in Clarecastle to outline the company’s plans but in a statement to Clare FM he says the good news for the site will allow Clarecastle to continue demonstrating the value it adds to Roche and the local community.
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