Quinn staff's incredible initiative

Sarah Saunderson • Published 8 Apr 2010 14:32 0 Comments

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Quinn employees turned out with a show of strength this week, the like of which has never been seen before.

As many as 6,000 Quinn employees made their feelings known about the importance of their jobs to their lives and their families' lives. For these employees -- hundreds of whom are employed in Fermanagh -- this is the most fundamental bread and butter issue. Their jobs mean food on the table, clothes for the children and oil in the tank.

And it's not just the employees. These local people who are employed by a man who is Fermanagh's most successful enterpreneur, who deliberately built up his business using the local workforce in his home county, in turn support other local businesses with their wages. Our local economy very much depends on these wage packets. The jobs provided by Quinn in Fermanagh are absolutely vital to the economy.

The shock news about the move by the Financial Regulator last week to have Quinn Insurance put into provisional administration for breaching solvency rules may have taken staff by surprise but they have done anything but lie down in the face of adversity.

The real and present danger to jobs is the decision by the Regulator to stop the writing of new policies within the UK market including Northern Ireland. If an existing policy expires, the company will not be in the position to renew it. It means no opportunity for new business and existing business cannot be sustained.

"We believe in particular the instruction for Quinn Insurance to cease writing business in the UK to be completely irrational. The role of the administrator was supposedly to ensure that the company operated for profit during the provisional period prior to the high court hearing on April 12. However the ban from writing business in the UK is having the complete reverse effect and if not rescinded immediately will result in there being no business to go back to if and when the administration is lifted," said a staff statement.

When Sean Quinn appears in the High Court next week, it is this ban that he will argue to be lifted. With the ban in place, the door to the shop at Quinn Insurance is effectively shut for a huge part of its market. Obviously the Regulator has a job to do. Commentators have said that light regulation in the past contributed to Ireland's current economic woes.

Mr. Quinn appears to have a plan of action but the decision will be in the hands of the court.

If there is one consolation in this whole affair for the entire Quinn Group, it is the knowledge that the decision to employ local people has been a good one. Their actions have demonstrated a tenacity, a loyalty and a initiative that any employer would want to see in his staff. Let us hope their work is rewarded.

This article appeared in Impartial Reporter 08 Apr 10

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