Full coverage: Covid19

The ripple effects of Covid-19 disruption to supply chains have reached unexpected corners of the economy, and Irish low-carbon cement manufacturer Ecocem found itself in one of them. Here is how it saved its bottom line.

Analysis of official traffic data and results from private toll road operators paint a grim financial picture. Another private operator is in serious financial trouble, while the taxpayer is shouldering most of the sector’s continuing pandemic burden.

Since the €24m write-down of former Ulster Bank loans in August, accounts trickling in from the US vulture fund’s Irish subsidiaries had shown poor performance in 2020. Until now. This is the story of how Cerberus made a comeback.

DirectRoute lost €8.4m in toll revenue from Cork and Limerick motorways last year as travel restrictions hit traffic. Taxpayers have covered more than half of it for the benefit of its overseas investors.

Aer Lingus cabin crew today were told there was a “surplus” of staff at certain grades. Those affected are looking at deep pay freezes and lay-offs, well into next year.

Hannah Quinn-Mulligan reflects on the frustrations and inconsistencies presented by the authorities following her year-long investigation into Covid-19 outbreaks in meat factories.

The second part of our investigation into the spread of the pandemic among meat factory staff examines why some of them fell through the safety net established to keep workers away from each other when they posed a risk of infection.

As cases of Covid-19 in meat factories grow higher than last year, the first instalment of a two-part, year-long investigation unveils how the meat industry got carte blanche to remain open when other industries were forced to shut down.

Superquinn heir and serial investor Eamonn Quinn believes the smartphone has been a gamechanger for retail, giving consumers enhanced power. Despite the crisis, he says retailers can flourish if they harness data, AI and meaningful customer service.

Devin Seán Martin started his college career in Ireland two years ago, but he hasn't seen his classmates, or the inside of an academic building for 18 months. He writes about what happens when his overseas college bucket list is all but cancelled, but how living in a deserted city thousands of kilometres away from his family has had its own lessons.