AN IRISH trade union said it fears there may be a ‘continuing potential risk’ to Ryanair staff after accommodation used by employees was reportedly targeted in an arson attack.
Forsá said the incident represents ‘a shocking and serious threat to the safety and wellbeing of workers’, many of whom were left distressed and shaken by the experience.
Ryanair said rubbish in wheelie bins was set on fire before the bins were placed in front of the doors of seven properties in Swords, Co. Dublin that are rented by Ryanair’s Irish and EU employees.
Gardaí revealed they responded to a report of a number of incidents of criminal damage by fire at residential properties in Swords in the early hours of Tuesday.
‘Targeted nature’
Fórsa national secretary Hazel Nolan said the union had ‘raised serious concerns regarding ongoing safety risks’.
“Given the targeted nature of the attack, the absence of an arrest, and the lack of clarity around motive, Fórsa believes there is a continuing potential risk to those residing in the affected properties,” she added.
Nicola Coleman, Fórsa assistant general secretary, met with affected members and said it was clear that many individuals were experiencing trauma and may require professional support.
Damage was caused to the front of the properties (Image: Leah Farrell / RollingNews.ie)The union added that it will support all members affected and will work to ensure that ‘all necessary measures are taken to safeguard their wellbeing in the aftermath of this attack’.
Forsá said it is engaging directly with Ryanair management and has called for an immediate and comprehensive response.
It has also written to the airline seeking a full risk assessment and the implementation of enhanced security measures, including a visible 24-hour security presence.
‘Stupidity hard to comprehend’
In a statement following the incident, Ryanair described those responsible as ‘mindless idiots’.
“This was clearly a criminal attack on rental properties in the Swords area,” it added.
“The stupidity of these people is hard to comprehend when these properties are rented to hard-working Irish and EU young people who work for Ryanair Inflight, Engineering and in our Swords Head Office and who pay their taxes here in the Irish State.
“Ryanair is one of the largest employers in the Swords area and it’s difficult to understand what these ‘morons’ thought they would achieve by this arson attack on rental properties and our hard-working employees.”
The airline praised gardaí and the fire brigade for their swift response, which limited damage to burns on the front doors, while no one was injured.
However, it added that several staff were ‘understandably unnerved by this senseless arson attack on the homes of hard-working young people’.
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