Workers at the defunct ESB power station in Rhode, Co Offaly, have until the end of the week to decide on a closure package after the company said the plant will close on April 7th.
Staff at power station have rejected - by 59 votes to 45 - a closure package worth about €250,000 each as part of a €20 million deal.
The company is understood to have been wary of a unilateral closure - fearing faces possible wildcat strike action.
No electricity has been produced at the plant since a worker was seriously injured in an explosion in May 2001.
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More than 100 staff have clocked in every day since the explosion, with the ESB spending €60,000 per week on wages and other costs, including shift and overtime allowances and local and national pay increases.