Union leaders tonight insisted they were willing to negotiate to resolve the Irish Ferries dispute after the company threatened to sharply cut a redundancy deal if staff do not return to work.
With the company claiming it has lost €5 million because of the row, management warned workers the pay-off deal could be cut by a quarter if ships are not back on the seas tomorrow.
In a memo to seafaring staff, Irish Ferries chief executive Eamonn Rothwell warned staff the Ulysses, Isle of Inishmoreand Jonathan Swiftmust return to service or a special cooperation payment would be shelved.
Sailings have been paralysed for 18 days with the three boats tied up in ports. But Siptu insisted they were open to talks and had not sought to compromise the right of any employee to take redundancy.
"The company has not made one single offer to the union since the present process began, nor has it indicated any willingness to pay the national minimum wage," a union spokeswoman said "Siptu makes no apologies for insisting that any agreement reached through this process is capable of being implemented and sustained over time on behalf of all employees of the company.
"If Irish Ferries is to address the central issue in the dispute they should set about doing so immediately."
It is understood officials in the Department of the Taoiseach are being kept up to date with developments as the crisis deepens. The original redundancy package offered to staff included four weeks pay per year of service, plus two weeks per year statutory redundancy.
An added payment was also offered to encourage staff to cooperate with the changeover to eastern European crewing.
Earlier today Irish Ferries issued a profit warning to the Stock Exchange showing the dispute has already cost it €5.5 million.
The company said the cost could soar to 11m euro by the end of the year if the row is not resolved. Irish Ferries also said it offered a voluntary severance package which was accepted by 90% of staff before the deadline of October 2, 2005.
The Seamen's Union of Ireland, which represents a majority of the staff on Irish Ferries ships, will consult with their members over the memo. ends 121856 DEC 05