1000 New Jobs in Ireland Announced by Apple as EU Tax Ruling Nears


11/11/2015



1000 more jobs would be added by computer giant Apple at Cork as the company intends to expand its campus there. The new jobs would be added by the middle of 2017.
 
The number of people employed by Apple in Ireland would increase to 6000 following this expansion by the US based company. Apple currently employs 5,000 people at the Hollyhill facility in the city, a 25% increase in a year.
 
This announcement was made during the visit of Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook to Dublin on Wednesday. The company has steadily grown its presence in Ireland since the company established its facility in Cork since 1980.
 
Manufacturing, customer care, finance and global supply chain management are some of the operations that the staff at Cork is engaged in.
 
This announcement by apple comes at a time when the company and the analysts are expecting a ruling by the European Commission on a tax probe. Apple was accused by the European Union last year of swerving international tax rules by letting Apple shelter profits worth tens of billions of dollars from revenue collectors in return for maintaining jobs.
 
The decision on the allegations is expected to be taken soon after Christmas. Substantial back taxes would be required to be paid by Apple is the decision goes against it.
 
Ireland is in the country where it declares much of its overseas profit for tax purposes.
 
Apart from supporting research in offshore energy technology, in partnership with the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, Apple has become an important employer in Ireland.
 
To develop innovative new ways of capturing wave energy and converting it to renewable electricity to power its facilities, Apple is also establishing a €1m Ocean Energy Industry Fund to support the initiative.
 
The announcement has been warmly welcomed by the Government and the IDA.
 
Development of a data center at Athenry worth €850 million was announced earlier in February this year.
 
The Philosophical Society at Trinity College Dublin honoured Mr. Cook with its Gold Medal of Honorary Patronage.
 
Cook said Apple has been in Ireland for 35 years, was proud to be the largest employer in Cork, and will always be proud to call Ireland home. With employees from dozens of countries, the facility in Cork is one of the most diverse on the planet, he said.
 
Claiming that Apple does not just see itself as based in Ireland but rooted here, Cook said that Apple had been in Ireland in good times and challenging times as well.
 
Mr Cook said Apple is very pro-privacy and plans to continue to encrypt end-to-end with no back door when he was asked about privacy and the UK's desire to force technology companies to not encrypt messages. He said to weaken encryption would wind up providing a vulnerability to the very people that intelligence agencies are trying to stop.
 
Apple's announcement was described as "a vote of confidence in Cork and in Ireland" according to Tánaiste Joan Burton.
 
The two sides of development in Ireland were shown by the announcements at Indeed.com and at Apple, said the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation,  Richard Bruton.
 
(Source:www.reuters.com & http://www.rte.ie)