Union leaders have told a Polish company involved in the refurbishment of the ESB power station in Moneypoint that it must hire some local labour.
ZRE Katowicz (Ireland) Construction was at the centre of controversy this week when it emerged it had been underpaying Polish employees.
The Technical, Engineering and Electrical Union (TEEU) claimed the company was paying workers €5.20 an hour, less than a third of the legally binding construction industry rate. The figures were disputed by the company but it admitted that an audit had uncovered "limited" underpayments. It said the situation was being rectified and workers would be paid back money owed.
Following a meeting between the two sides, TEEU general secretary Owen Wills said the union had told the company it must not discriminate against qualified local workers as it continued to recruit staff at Moneypoint.
"We have made it clear to the company and to the ESB that we will represent fully all Polish workers recruited by ZRE Katowicz and oppose any attempt to victimise them," said Mr Wills.
"However we also made it clear that there is a tradition in this part of Clare to recruit suitably qualified local labour when refurbishments take place at the power station, as is clearly the case at present.
"Given that the project is expanding, there is ample scope for ZRE Katowicz to continue employing Polish workers and recruit Irish employees as well."
Mr Wills added that as the company admitted underpaying Polish workers and now accepted it must pay them the full rate, there was "no longer any financial incentive for them to discriminate in their recruitment policies against Irish workers".
TEEU regional secretary Pat Guilfoyle said earlier in the week that suitably qualified workers were available in and around the Moneypoint area to do the work being carried out by ZRE's Polish employees. He claimed the ZRE case was an example of "gross exploitation" and the displacement of jobs.
The company responded by criticising "misinformation" regarding its workers' pay rates and conditions of employment.
It said its Moneypoint workers received a basic monthly salary of €1,300 net of all deductions and taxes. Their gross monthly salary included about €800 in expenses incurred by the company on the employees' behalf.