Achill talks

Údarás in talks to fill Contact 4 void

Anton McNulty

THE PROSPECT of alternative employment replacing the former Contact 4 call centre in Achill received a boost last week, when it was revealed that four companies are in talks with Údarás na Gaeltachta and Comhlacht Forbartha Áitiuil Acla with a view to locating on the island.
Last March, the Contact 4 call centre suddenly closed its operation in its Achill Sound call centre with the immediate loss of 36 jobs. Contact 4, a Glasgow-based call centre company, had been in Achill for less than two years and at the time claimed its decision to close down its Irish operations was motivated by the dramatic slump in the mortgage market and the consumer lending business in the UK.
After the jobs losses were announced, senior officials with Údarás na Gaeltachta met with the workers and said they would leave no stone unturned in seeking to attract alternative employment to the island. Last week, Mr Terence Dever, CEO of CFÁA confirmed to The Mayo News that ‘reputable’ and ‘long-established’ companies were in talks with Údarás na Gaeltachta with a view to locating in the former Contact 4 site.
“A couple of companies have expressed interest in coming into the former Contact 4 offices. They are long-established companies who have call centres around the country and they have met with Údarás na Gaeltachta. These are long-standing, reputable companies and things are looking very positive. I have to say that I am full of praise for Údarás who said they would leave no stone unturned and they haven’t,” he said.
Mr Dever also confirmed that all bar four members of staff have received payments they were owed by Contact 4. Some staff members were owed up to seven and eight weeks wages from the company and there was a fear among some staff that because of the company’s sudden departure, they would not receive the payments. However, the staff received their payments in the last few weeks and the remaining four members will receive their final payments within the next two weeks.