Trains will run as normal today as a threatened one-day strike was called off late last night.
Iarnród Éireann and trade unions accepted a document issued by the Labour Relations Commission, which will be considered by the Labour court next week. The strike was threatened as a result of a dispute by line inspection and maintenance staff.
The inspection and maintenance personnel, who are members of Siptu and the NBRU, last night accepted new proposals put forward by the Labour Relations Commission (LRC) yesterday in a bid to avert a planned 24-hour strike.
A Siptu statement last night confirmed the strike had been averted and said that following the talks the union's interpretation of its agreement with the company in 2002 had been upheld. "A number of minor issues remain to be resolved and the unions will be seeking assurances on these from the company."
Íarnród Éireann in a statement said the talks had culminated in a document "which has been accepted by the company and the trade unions, and will allow the substantive issues to be heard by the Labour court on week commencing 22nd October".
It is understood the new proposals involve the issues at the heart of the dispute, which relate to staff deployment arrangements being referred to the Labour Court. Services to and from Cork, Kerry and Limerick including commuter services in Cork, will run as normal following the agreement. Iarnród Éireann said the LRC's document now allowed for the substantive issues to be discussed.
Siptu had said that rail workers were being forced to take industrial action because management had continued to forge ahead with plans which undermined existing working conditions without agreement. In a statement issued prior to the resumption of talks, Siptu branch organiser Willie Noone said management was "progressively introducing a five-day week spread over seven days for certain categories of workers, and utilising contract workers to carry out essential work which should be done by our members".
Iarnród Éireann had strongly denied that the company breached any agreements. A spokesman for Iarnród Éireann had said earlier that under a deal reached in 2000 line inspectors and maintenance staff were rostered on a Monday-to-Friday basis with some night work.
Staff employed after 2000 worked under more flexible arrangements, while contractors were also used to carry out some night work. A number of the pre-2000 staff were seeking to opt out of compulsory night work while at the same time seeking first option on other night work attracting premium overtime pay.