Port workers refuse to handle Irish Ferries' ships

Dublin port workers voted to support Irish Ferries staff fighting attempts to replace them with cheaper foreign labor by refusing to handle any of the firm’s ships, according to an Ireland Online report. The vote was unanimous. As a result of this ballot, SIPTU (Ireland’s largest union) members will not handle any Irish Ferries ships – such as the MV Normandy – until the dispute is resolved, according to the report. The MV Normandy was allowed to dock late on Sunday night at Dublin with 113 passengers, for what was described as humanitarian reasons, after protests by port workers in Rosslare forced it to divert to the capital. It has since sailed to Cherbourg and SIPTU has given the company notice its members will not allow it to return. The increasingly bitter debate between union members and management at the ferry company began in mid-September when Irish Ferries announced it was looking to replace 543 Irish workers with foreign agency staff. Source: Ireland Online