Union’s call for strike is absurd

The National Bus and Rail Union (NBRU) has withdrawn from talks with the Department of Transport, while SIPTU, the country’s largest union, has indicated that industrial action at Coras Iompar Éireann (CIÉ) is inevitable.

The dispute is part of a long-running row over the possible privatisation of Bus Éireann and Dublin Bus routes, as well as the further break up of CIÉ.

The general secretary of the NBRU, Liam Tobin, complained that no specific proposals have been tabled during the past year as to how the routes might be privatised, or how the assets of CIÉ might be allocated.