Dell is transferring its European PC manufacturing from Ireland
to Poland to cut costs, in a move that will see 1,900 assembly
plant workers in Limerick lose their jobs.
The Limerick jobs hit
has been mooted for some time, with the number of temporary
workers having already been slashed.
It has been a sensitive decision to transfer assembly to Poland
though, as Dell has received large government grants to bring jobs
to Ireland, particularly the poorer part of western Ireland where
the assembly plant stands.
But, according to analyst Gartner, with Dell now having been
usurped as the leading PC supplier by Hewlett-Packard, and having
also fallen behind Acer, it is under pressure to rapidly reduce
costs.
The Limerick jobs transfer is expected to be complete by next
January, with the first workers expected to leave by this
April.
Chinese PC maker Lenovo is also shedding 2,500 jobs on the back
of poor results.