Aer Lingus strike 'would hit Ireland's hotels hard'

A Donegal hotelier is warning that a prolonged series of airport strikes could bring his industry back to its knees.

Siptu members at Aer Lingus and the Dublin Airport Authority are set to down tools for four hours, between 5am and 9am, on the Friday of St Patrick's weekend.

Brian McEniffe is appealing to all sides to get the Labour Relations Commission involved in the effort to resolve the dispute.

He says growth has been far slower in the hotel industry outside of Dublin, and a longer campaign of industrial action would knock them for six.

Calls are mounting for the Minister for Transport and Tourism Leo Varadkar to intervene in the pensions dispute.

Siptu has accused management of failing to engage in meaningful talks or to put forward reasonable proposals to resolve the row over pensions.

Fianna Fáil's Tourism Spokesperson, Timmy Dooley, says Minister Varadkar needs to get off the fence and help bring an end to the dispute.