LIMERICK people are being encouraged to “be Irish and buy Irish” during national campaign and awareness strategy that will run for the duration of the Euro 2016 finals.
The Director of the Small Firms Association, Patricia Callan, has said that Ireland’s achievement in qualifying for the Euro 2016 Finals will give a major social and economic boost to the country.
According to Ms Callan “qualification gives Ireland an opportunity to showcase itself to an international audience of over 390 million people. This is a major opportunity for our tourism industry. It should also mean that more Irish people will holiday at home to join in the celebrations.”
The merchandising and advertising spend on Euro 2016 will run to millions and pubs, restaurants, newspapers, magazines and specialist clothing manufacturers are all set to benefit. However in order to maximise the benefit the SFA is calling on all of Ireland’s 2 million workers to make an extra effort to Buy Irish during Euro 2016.
Ms Callan stated “if everyone spent just €20 a week extra on Irish products, the result would be an extra spend of €170 million on Irish made products during Euro 2016. This would have a significant impact for small business and would demonstrate in a meaningful way the concept of “Be Irish – Buy Irish” for Euro 2016.”
On a social level the country can look forward to recapturing the spirit of previous international soccer competitions. On each occasion Irish business had received a huge boost. However, there is a threat of increased absenteeism from work during Euro 2016, and the SFA is advising companies to put an absence management plan in place. “Euro 2016 has a broad following and as well as Irish fans, there are significant numbers of non-Irish workers in the country, who will be following their home teams. Consequently, it is imperative for Companies to put in place a plan to deal with potential absenteeism from work during Euro 2016,” stated Ms Callan.
The SFA has released recommendations to help minimise the problems anticipated over the Euro 2016 period including:
· Where possible, agree with employees that they can take the relevant days off, as part of their annual leave entitlement.
· Where possible, operate a flexi-time system on match days, so that staff can watch the matches by coming to work earlier or work later and make up the time.
· Where possible, allow staff to listen to the radio or watch television during short breaks at work, but make it clear that this is a privilege that will be withdrawn if abused.
