More than 200 scientists and technologists at Forfas and Enterprise Ireland will escalate their industrial action on Monday.

Among areas to be hit are the calibration of instruments for industry, which will especially affect the pharmaceutical and electronics sectors, environmental impact studies for planning applications and research and development grants for companies.

The staff involved are members of MSF and have been engaged in a more limited work-to-rule for the past week. They are pressing a 4 per cent pay claim they argue is needed to bring them into line with other grades in State agencies. MSF national secretary Mr Jerry Shanahan says: "The action is in protest at the failure of management to address grading issues arising out of the new agency structure formed by the merger of the Irish Trade Board (An Bord Trachtala) with Forbairt in July 1998.

"Despite two years of discussions and negotiation, 200 members of the MSF professional group still have not been fully integrated into the new structures and organisation."

A spokesman for Enterprise Ireland, Mr Pascal Maguire, said the Labour Court had already issued a recommendation, which MSF rejected. "We remain available for talks and a search for a solution within the terms of the Programme for Prosperity and Fairness. " Enterprise Ireland is due to come under the Freedom of Information Act early next year.