Postal services faced a renewed threat of disruption last night after a new row broke out between An Post and the Communications Workers Union.
The dispute flared when the company began suspending workers at its parcels division, SDS, which is due to close at the end of the month. It took the action when the workers refused to co-operate with management moves to proceed with the reintegration of SDS's business into the main An Post group.
A total of 43 workers were suspended yesterday and that number was expected to rise late last night when a further 25 staff came on duty.
An Post advised people not to take parcels to post offices until further notice, saying it was not in a position to deliver them.
A company spokesman refused to speculate on the possibility of the dispute spreading to other areas of the postal service. Mr Seán McDonagh, a senior official with the CWU, said there was no reason for this to happen "and it wouldn't be the union's intention".
"However, if the company continues to act as it has then it [a widening of the dispute] would be unavoidable," he said.
The row erupted as the two sides met for talks about SDS, which had been scheduled earlier, at the Labour Relations Commission.
The CWU claimed that the company had circumvented those talks by proceeding with the wind-down of SDS in advance of final agreement.
An Post, however, said the deadline for reintegrating SDS into An Post had never been negotiable.
The incident that sparked the dispute yesterday was a refusal by SDS staff to load parcels which had arrived from the United States on to a lorry for transportation to Portlaoise, where they were to be processed under the company's new arrangements.
A company spokesman denied a claim by the union that a number of Dublin-based SDS workers had been ordered this week to relocate to Portlaoise.