Strike action looms at Irish Rail

Irish Rail passengers are facing severe disruption to services in the coming weeks after the company said it was implementing a cost-savings plan without the agreement of two of its largest unions.

The plan will see temporary pay cuts ranging from 1.7% for staff earning up to €56,000, up to 6.1% for those earning more than €100,000. The company said it will start imposing the measures on August 24, which were recommended by the Labour Court to apply for 28 months.

Irish Rail says it has suffered a reduction in annual income of over €108m since the onset of the economic crisis.