Apple gets green light to add 1,000 jobs at Irish headquarters

More than nine months after Apple first announced plans to expand its European headquarters in Cork, Ireland, and amid an EU probe into questionable tax practices, the company was recently granted approval to add 1,000 people to its workforce over the next 18 months.

To accommodate the influx of new hires, which will bring the total employee head count to more than 6,000, Apple has plans to build a four-story office block projected for completion next year, The Irish Times reports.

In addition to the office building, Apple will add 752 new parking spaces to existing facilities. The construction effort is expected to employ some 200 people, Apple said.

Local residents of Hollyhill objected to the project, saying they would be "practically living in an industrial estate" if Apple was granted permission to expand. Ireland planning board An Bord PleanÃ¡la ultimately determined the new offices and construction were within the constraints of the Cork City Development Plan and would have no noticeable impact on the surrounding community.

Rumors of a major Cork expansion arrived in May 2015. At the time, reports indicated that Apple was looking to improve facilities at its headquarters to meet growing international demand for its products. Apple CEO Tim Cook later confirmed the company would hire 1,000 people to fill positions in manufacturing, customer care, finance and global supply chain management.

Apple will be building as European Union antitrust watchdog, the European Commission, probes the firm's tax strategy, which employs the so-called "Double Irish" provision to sidestep billions of dollars in taxes. Because the Cork facility plays a central role in Apple's version of the popular accounting scheme, the commission is investigating whether Ireland gave the company preferential treatment in a bid to spur job creation and economic growth. A judgment is due in September.

24 Comments

🎄

latifbp 9 Years · 544 comments

About 8 years ago

Ok Euros. You still not really value or appreciate now 7000 jobs in Ireland? Still want to degrade and devalue what Apple is contributing to Ireland?

⛄

512ke 19 Years · 781 comments

Apple should get out of Ireland in my personal opinion. The deals they are making with the government there are not reliable over time.

apple ][ 13 Years · 9225 comments

Apple should wait and see what the results of the crooked EU probe are before committing to anything.

You can't trust those people.

jfc1138 12 Years · 3090 comments

512ke said:

Apple should get out of Ireland in my personal opinion. The deals they are making with the government there are not reliable over time.

Well since they'll want to continue doing business in the EU Ireland may be the friendliest place. But, yes, the extra deals seem too subject to the whim of people in Belgium for long term reliance. And that retroactive twist sure bites.

🌟

cnocbui 17 Years · 3612 comments

latifbp said:

Ok Euros. You still not really value or appreciate now 7000 jobs in Ireland? Still want to degrade and devalue what Apple is contributing to Ireland?

Let me explain how this works as simply as I can: All the foreign companies that have a presence in Ireland, are here because they see an advantage to themselves, not because they are doing Ireland a favour out of the goodness of the hearts that none of them have.

For sure they are all most welcome and Ireland would indeed be more stuffed than it is without the employment they provide, but this is not a one-way street. There is also benefit for the companies, otherwise they wouldn't be here.

What is it with this DEDesque article that initially gives the impression Apple needed permission from someone to expand it's workforce? It's always got to be made out that the entire world is against Apple but that they miraculously prevail against all the evil forces opposing them. Apple applied for planning permission to build more buildings and it was given approval. That isn't close to being the same thing as implying Apple needed permission to employ more people.