Industrial action - Public held to ransom over strikes

WITH strikes looming in two essential services, the beleaguered public is once again being held to ransom because management and unions have failed to sort out their differences around the table.

The travel plans of thousands of Aer Lingus passengers will be disrupted if SIPTU goes ahead with industrial action from Wednesday next.

And thousands of patients in the country’s hospitals will be affected in a series of protests and lightening stoppages starting on Monday as angry nurses crank up their pay row with the Health Service Executive.

The most depressing aspect of this fractious industrial relations scenario is the absence of meaningful communication between the opposing sides in search of a feasible resolution.

Regrettably, long suffering passengers and vulnerable patients are pawns in a dual game of blackmail. It is high time heads were knocked together and for common sense to prevail.