TEMPERATURES weren’t very far above freezing on Friday, but a number of Shannon Heritage workers still assembled outside Bunratty, looking to vent frustration over the uncertainty around Shannon Heritage’s future.
The delays around the transfer are widely seen as farcical and workers outside what was once one of the country’s top tourist attractions brandished signs indicating their disillusionment.
‘Political ping pong’, ‘Master Plan to Master Sham’ and ‘Staff in the dark’ a sample of them read.
“We’re gutted at this stage, it’s going on for over a year and a half at this stage,” said Caroline O’Sullivan, one of the protesting employees.
“We were told in February of last year it’d be taken over in June. In June we were told Christmas, and here we are another year down the road and we still don’t know. It’s very uncertain for people with mortgages, children going to school or college. It’s a tough time,” she added.
Workers are very disappointed with how Shannon Airport Group has treated them during a long period of uncertainty, she says.
“There’s no talks with them, very little communication. I believe that there will be communication next week with the airport staff. We’re still their staff at the moment until Clare County Council take us over, if that happens. But there’s no date in the diary for us. It’s disappointing to be treated so badly.”
Lilly Murphy has worked there since the 1990s, and she says that the vision of the future outlined when Shannon Group took over never came to anything.
“I’m very angry because when the Shannon Group took over we were promised the sun, moon and stars.
“We had this big masterplan, everything was going to be hunky dory, and do you know something, it’s downwards we’ve been going since, completely.”
She said that there is huge frustration among the staff about the transfer which was supposed to happen over a year ago, and which is still open ended.
“We were told last year everything would be done and dusted by last December, and here we are December 12 months on and nothing done. You can understand why we are all so frustrated.”
Like many other people there, she was annoyed with the lack of an effort to keep them informed about what is happening.
“There’s a lack of communication, no-one comes in and talks to us. No-one has told us what the situation is.”
She said staff have done their best to do a good job in the circumstances.
“We have kept going, we have a smile on our faces every day meeting the people, but it’s getting harder and harder.”
Owen Ryan has been a journalist with the Clare Champion since 2007, having previously worked with a number of other publications in Limerick, Cork and Galway. His first book will be published in December 2024.