Bausch & Lomb Waterford is closing its plant for a week at the end of this month.
It's in order to balance output and demand due to the effect of the Covid-19 pandemic.
A spokesman for the company, which employs 1,400 people, confirmed today that it will suspend its contact lens manufacturing operations for two weeks this quarter.
The plant will close for a week at the end of this month and possibly for a week at the end of June.
Waterford TD David Cullinane says he believes workers will have to use their annual leave:
"We all know it's very challenging for manufacturing and for all businesses at the moment, both nationally and internationally with the Covid crisis. I know talking to some people who work in there that they were expecting worse; what I'm hearing is that the suspension will be for two weeks in this quarter and potentially for a couple of weeks in the autumn as well.
"It could very well be that staff will have to take that from their annual leave but the most important thing from my perspective is that we maintain the jobs; that the long-term viability of the plant is what's really important."
