Irish Ferries dispute due before Labour Court today
Both sides in the Irish Ferries dispute are due to attend the Labour Court today, but the prospects for a resolution appear as remote as ever.
The company has announced plans to replace 550 workers on its Irish Sea routes with cheaper labour from abroad in an effort to reduce costs.
SIPTU has served strike notice as a result of the move, but has agreed to defer any action pending today's Labour Court hearing.
However, Irish Ferries is refusing to discuss its plan to get rid of the Irish workers and has insisted that it will only address one issue relating to an employment agreement.
The company is claiming 90% of workers have accepted a voluntary redundancy offer, but SIPTU is disputing this.
The union has accused Irish Ferries of pressurising staff into accepting the offer and has claimed that many who did so have now changed their minds.
