Staff at a defunct power station in Co Offaly yesterday rejected new proposals to discuss the plant's closure. The rejection comes despite a recommendation to enter talks by all trade unions in the plant at Rhode, which has not produced power since a worker was seriously injured in an explosion in May last year.
It is believed that 104 staff voted by 65 per cent to 31 per cent against discussing closure in isolation from any compensation for exposure to asbestos at the power station.
The workers have clocked in routinely since production ceased, receiving shift allowances, pay increases under the Programme for Prosperity and Fairness and a separate 20 per cent pay rise linked to a general ESB rationalisation plan.
It is also understood the company provided retraining to a large number of staff at Rhode, with certain individuals attending more than one course.
Yesterday's vote follows a recommendation by the Joint Industrial Council (JIC) at the ESB to proceed with discussions on the plant's closure, which was sanctioned by the company board last February. It is understood that the workers want any compensation for exposure to asbestos discussed together with a closure package or before a dialogue on closure.
While a very small number of staff have contracted an asbestos-linked condition known as pleural plaque, those who remain will want compensation for anxiety.
Certain individuals familiar with the scene claim this stance is similar to the one adopted by 12,000 former soldiers who were compensated for hearing loss after leaving the Army. That saga has cost the State €245 million so far and 4,000 outstanding cases are projected to cost an additional €80 million. Certain former soldiers were compensated even though they had zero or minimal damage to their hearing.
With certain former staff at the Office of Public Works receiving compensation in the courts for exposure to asbestos even though they were not unwell, the ESB is strongly opposed to any settlement with workers who remain well. Asbestos was a key component in many power stations and office buildings built by the company in the 1950s and 1960s.
However, cases have been taken on the basis that asbestos-related sicknesses lie dormant for years before illness begins. Pleural plaque is the least serious of three conditions that arise from long-term exposure to asbestos. The others are fatal: asbestosis and mesothelioma.
The breakdown with the workers is a headache for the new ESB chief executive, Mr Pádraig McManus, who took office two weeks ago. With staff and fuel costs rising and a significant capital programme under way, the company has applied to the electricity regulator for a price increase. It is thought that a rise of 15 per cent might be sanctioned, although this is unconfirmed.
Despite the funding squeeze, Rhode is the second peat-burning station in Co Offaly to remain open long after production ceased. The ESB spent €8.89 million keeping the station at Ferbane open for two years before its closure last December.
To leave the plant, staff at Ferbane received a lump sum equivalent to two years' salary and ongoing payment of half their salary until retirement age. Workers at Rhode are understood to be seeking more than this, in isolation to any asbestos-linked claims.
An ESB spokesman said: "We are awaiting formal confirmation from the unions of the result of the ballot of staff at Rhode on the JIC recommendation. ESB management is determined to progress this matter as soon as possible so that a resolution can be reached."
Last night the secretary of the ESB group of unions, Mr Paddy Reilly, said: "I will communicate the result of the ballot to the ESB tomorrow."
