Drivers involved in unofficial action at Ceannt Station in Galway city have gone back to work following agreement to hold a Labour Relations Council Conference tomorrow morning.
Michael Halpenny, Siptu
The dispute followed changes to a school bus route in Connemara that resulted in a private bus operator being hired.
A Bus Éireann spokeswoman told ireland.com: "It is standard practice to hire private companies when there is not the capacity to fulfil the route requirements. In this case numbers on the school bus route have gone up and we have to adhere to the one child one seat rule."
"We spend taxpayers money and have to find the most cost effective way to provide the service," she added.
Micheal Halpenny, national industrial secretary of Siptu, which represents some of the drivers, told ireland.comthat the hiring of the private contractor was done without any consultation but that the issue was a wider one for the whole of Bus Éireann:
"We have been pointing out the inadequacy of the bus supply in Bus Éireann for over 12 months now. Then when Transport 21 was launched there was no increase in the number of buses - Bus Éireann is expected to run a national service on a shoestring."
There have been disputes in other parts of the country over similar problems. Last month in Athlone there was a half-day walkout over the increasing use of contractors due to lack of buses. In Waterford last week around 120 drivers also took unofficial action.
"In Waterford there were drivers sitting in the canteen while private contractors ran the routes, and the private contractors wouldn't allow Bus Éireann drivers to use their vehicles," said Mr Halpenny.
Mr Halpenny will be attending the Labour Relations Council tomorrow along with a representative of the National Bus and Rail Union.