Garda strike action: An agreement slowly unravels

Just 19 hours before a threatened strike, Tánaiste Frances Fitzgerald stood up in the Dáil to plead with the gardaí, writes Elaine Loughlin

Industrial relations disputes usually come down to the wire and more often than not a satisfactory — or satisfactory enough — deal can be hammered out.

But this has been no ordinary dispute. It involves a cohort who have sworn an oath to the State, who have never gone out on strike before, and whose morale remains at an all-time low.