Monday, March 23, 2009

Half Empty Or Half Full

The workers at the Waterford Crystal factory in Kilbarry, County Waterford have ended their seven week sit-in. The protest is over and the workers have lost another one.

What was once a manufacturer of fine crystal is now to become nothing more than a tourist attraction, a stop on the Irish tour itinerary. Watch the skilled craftsmen blow goblets. Have a blow yourself and see what it used to be like, back when people had to have fine Waterford crystal on their dining table.

KPS Capital Partners bought up the assets of Waterford Wedgwood when the company went under, another victim of changing tastes and sliding fortunes. They weren't interested in glass making or porcelain production, and they didn't need all those glass-blowers or furnace tenders or the like.

The sit-in was launched to save the 480 jobs in the Kilbarry plant. Following the union's acceptance of KPS Capital's deal, only 176 people will have work, and they will be more like docents in a museum than artisans. The Kilbarry facility will remain open, to produce a few items so that the tourists can continue to see how crystal is manufactured by hand.

If, by some chance, you're still looking for a piece of genuine Waterford crystal that was made in Ireland by Irish glass blowers, you'll want to hunt down the Prestige line. Anything else with the Waterford name will be Waterford in name only.

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