400 jobs for Irish Water at Abtran will have enormous impact on Bishopstown – Buttimer

Fine Gael Cork South Central Deputy, Jerry Buttimer, has said the announcement of 400 new jobs to be created at the Abtran facility in Bishopstown, for Irish Water, will be a shot in the arm for the local area, which has struggled under the weight of high unemployment in recent years. This news comes on the back of figures released this morning by the CSO which show that the unemployment rate has fallen to below 14% to 13.7% for the first time since Aug 2010, demonstrating that the Government’s plan to get people back to work is starting to pay off.

“The appointment by Irish Water of Abtran Ltd to operate its contact call centre is great news for Cork, great news for the unemployed and great news for the new State utility company. Since its establishment in Ireland in 1997, Abtran has grown from strength to strength to a position where it now employs 1,100 staff in Cork and Dublin, and is recognised internationally as a leader in its field.

“Recruitment for these jobs will begin from tomorrow, 31st May, and those with an interest in securing a position should send their CVs to [email protected]/* */ It is expected that the call centre will begin operations from July, with 100 of the positions being filled by that stage. By the middle of next year, it is envisaged that the call centre will be employing 400 people, providing customer care to approximately 1.6 million domestic and commercial public water users.

“Over the last year, a significant amount of work has been done to get the Irish Water wheels in motion. The announcement of these jobs, which will support the public on issues of concern to them or queries they may have in respect of the new public utility, is a major step in transforming how water services are delivered in Ireland.

“It is expected that a further 1,600 jobs will be created through the national metering programme which will get underway this summer, which will bring a renewed sense of hope and a brighter future for the men and women who secure these jobs.

“It is essential that we invest in our water infrastructure so that we can ensure adequate supply of high quality water for the people of Ireland. Roughly half of our supply is currently being lost through old and substandard piping and the delivery of public and waste water services through 34 city and local councils is leading to a fragmented and poor value for money amenity.

“If we want to encourage foreign direct investment from water-intensive industries and to develop our tourism sector, it is imperative that we have good, clean water on tap. Getting our people back to work is our number one priority. This announcement, on the back of the CSO figures released today which show that the total numbers has fallen below 300,000 for the first time since 2008, is proof that we are slowly but surely moving in the right direction.”
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