Minister hails jobs boost for city
Jobs Minister Richard Bruton welcomed news that Eishtec is to create 250 jobs in Waterford
Some 250 jobs promised for Waterford have been hailed as a ray of hope for a city battered by mass lay-offs since the economic collapse.
The positions are to be created at the Eishtec call-centre after it secured a contract to provide customer services for Orange, one of the UK's leading mobile brands.
Jobs Minister Richard Bruton said the jobs, to be in place by the middle of this year, would be a much needed boost for the entire south east.
"However we are not going to address the region's problems overnight," he said.
Mr Bruton said structural challenges remained in the region which needed to be tackled over several years by government, the community and other stakeholders in the area.
"We have started that process and with the right approach today's announcement can be replicated over the coming years," he said.
The expansion of the Eishtec's new custom built facility at Cleaboy Business Park in Waterford was part funded by the taxpayer through Enterprise Ireland. Recruitment for the new positions is already under way.
Waterford Fine Gael TD Paudie Coffey said the jobs were much needed in the city and offered hope to many in the dole queues after high-profile redundancies from companies including Talk Talk, Waterford Crystal and Bausch and Lomb.
"These jobs come at a time of an unemployment crisis in Waterford where we suffered numerous job losses late last year," he said.
Eishtec was set up by Heather Reynolds, Brian Barry and Colm Tracey early last year and currently employs 30 people. Ms Reynolds, Eishtec's director of operations, said: "We expect to grow this business to create further employment and opportunities in our local community, with the welcome support of Enterprise Ireland."
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