An independent facilitator may be appointed to deal with the controversial closure of the loss-making parcels business SDS by An Post.
The National Implementation Body (NIB), set up under Sustaining Progress, last night said it wanted the company to review its operational procedures in relation to SDS and establish a partnership process to deal with the closure which is expected to lead to the loss of 270 jobs.
Unions last night said they wanted an independent figure, possibly from the National Partnership Centre, to chair talks on SDS. Mr Terry Delaney, a senior official at the Communication Worker's Union (CWU) said: "The company have effectively disengaged from the partnership process. They have dumped the whole partnership process and this recommendation from the NIB means they will have to get back into the process".
The company, however, denies there has been a lack of partnership and will today share further financial information about SDS with unions at An Post.
The CWU said it would be passing any figures it received onto its financial advisors for review. General secretary, Mr Steve Fitzpatrick, said the union did not believe the company's plans "stacked up".
The CWU yesterday lodged an official complaint with NIB about how An Post has handled the closure, which is expected to lead to the loss of 270 jobs.
The CWU claims staff were not consulted before the decision was taken.
Mr Fitzpatrick said he believed the company was also "massaging" the figures.
However, a spokesman for the company said there was no attempt to massage the figures. "The board of An Post had been engaged in a strategic exercise since November, looking at all the options. It has decided to reintegrate SDS back into the An Post business, with the consequent job losses" said the spokesman.
He said the company did not have to consult with unions in advance, but it consulted with them afterwards and provided information upon which it had based its decision.
He said the company then wrote to the unions inviting them to a meeting where additional information would be provided. All unions were due to attend this meeting today, he said.
The CWU said despite an initial downturn in its business, SDS customers were using the service once again.
The union said small business owners would be devastated if the service closed because they would be forced to use private operators whose charges were three to four times higher than SDS.
