LAST UPDATE | 28 Oct

HUNDREDS OF JOBS are now at risk after Nuvion Group, the parent company of Fastway Couriers Ireland, Parcel Connect, and Nügo, entered receivership today.

The company has ceased trading with immediate effect, according to an internal email sent to staff today by joint receivers Mark Degnan and Brendan O’Reilly of Interpath Advisory.

At least 300 direct jobs are believed to be at risk, with over a thousand part-time and contract positions also potentially affected.

All impacted staff were informed of the news this afternoon.

Employees were told they would “not be paid beyond this point” and are not expected to attend work unless requested.

A consultation process on employment matters is due to begin, with a staff briefing scheduled for midday tomorrow.

In a statement seen by The Journal, Nuvion said sustained inflation, rising operating costs and intense price pressures in the parcels market had made the business “no longer viable in its current form.”

Delays and disruptions to deliveries are expected in the coming days, with the receivers saying they will work with retailers to minimise the impact.

A spokesperson said that parcels already in the Fastway network are expected to be delivered ‘where possible’.

Fastway delivers an estimated 25 million parcels annually. Their network consists of 24 locations, including 20 depots nationwide, two sortation hubs, a customer care centre in Portarlington, and a head office based in Dublin.

Fastway also operates Parcel Connect throughout Ireland, in partnership with over 1,300 Parcel Connect stores.

One Fastway employee told The Journal that staff were “blindsided” by the announcement this afternoon.

He said that Fastway management had informed staff in recent weeks that they were not at risk of losing their jobs “until at least March” due to the “busy” Winter delivery period.

He added that couriers currently “do not know” if the parcels currently being stored by Fastway will be delivered.

“I asked when the items were going to be delivered, and the people handling the receivership had no timeline for deliveries of anything that’s in the depot, or customer collections,” the employee said.

“Even items due to be delivered today, they did not have an answer for any of it.”