Concerns regarding the possible transfer of Kerry County Council staff to Irish Water have been raised by local representatives.
A number of Kerry County Councillors outlined their concerns at the recent monthly meeting of the council.
Independent councillor Charlie Farrelly brought a motion on the issue before council.
He called on Kerry County Council to call an urgent meeting to explain and discuss the possible transfer of council employees to Irish Water.
Cllr Farrelly says this potential move would have serious consequences on water services within the county.
His concerns were shared by several other local representatives.
The councillors praised Kerry County Council’s water services staff and said they were the ones ensuring water is flowing in the county.
They said these staff members have local knowledge and can be contacted at anytime of the day or night; the councillors agreed this move shouldn’t take place, particularly due to the regular water outages around Kerry and the need for local staff to be contactable at all times.
In response to Cllr Farrelly’s motion, Kerry County Council said this is a national issue being dealt with nationally by Government with unions and management.
The council says it’s obliged at this stage to respect the established process and await the outcome of that process before engaging at a local level.
