DUBLIN, Ireland, Nov. 30 (UPI) -- Irish sailors on two big ferries refused Wednesday to sail or leave the ships, now docked in Wales, in a row over ship owners' plans to hire cheaper labor.
Ireland's leading transport company, Irish Ferries, plans to re-register its vessels in Cyprus and has begun hiring sailors from Latvia and eastern European countries, the Irish Times reported Wednesday.
About 90 percent of the company's Irish sailors have accepted a severance package -- but been unable to receive it because of the job action.
Meanwhile, sailing of two other Irish Ferries vessels remains suspended in the weeklong dispute and the Irish Congress of Trade Unions plans a day of protest Dec. 9 on behalf of those sailors who do not want the severance package. The ICTU says the jobs of about 500 Irish sailors hang in the balance.
Irish Ferries says that it must compete with a deregulated, low-cost airline industry that is free to use non-Irish employees. Also, the wages it will pay non-Irish sailors are 30 percent higher than Ireland's on-land minimum, it says.
The European Commission said Tuesday Irish Ferries' plans did not violate any of its laws or regulations.
