A campaign to have State agencies removed from the Government's decentralisation programme is to be undertaken by Siptu, the union representing most of the workers affected.
It announced yesterday that members in Fás had voted overwhelmingly to take industrial action over the manner in which the agency is implementing its planned move to Birr, Co Offaly.
Siptu has a specific dispute with Fás, and has no plans for industrial action at other agencies due to be decentralised.
However last night its national industrial secretary, Michael Halpenny, said the union would shortly begin a campaign to have State agencies removed from the programme.
Siptu says it represents close to 2,000 of the 2,500-odd State agency staff whose jobs are due to be relocated. Mr Halpenny said "99 per cent" of the union's members had "no interest whatsoever" in moving to the locations earmarked for them.
A series of public meetings and lobbying of politicians would be part of Siptu's campaign.
In the meantime, the union's opposition to the programme has come to a head at Fás, the State training and employment agency, which is due to relocate to Birr in 2009.
Siptu is opposed to the agency's policy of restricting head-office promotions to those who are prepared to commit to relocating to the midlands town.
New recruits to the agency's head-office in Baggot Street, Dublin, are also required to sign up for decentralisation.
A fortnight's notice of industrial action is likely to be served by the union this week. Initially the action is expected to involve short work stoppages, but an all-out strike could ensue.
Only six of Fás's 400 head-office staff expressed an interest in relocating to Birr through the Government's central applications facility.
However, 51 staff have committed to the move since the policy of linking decentralisation to promotions and recruitment of staff was introduced.
Siptu has described it as "promotional blackmail". It took a case to the Labour Court, which found that the agency's policy of promoting only staff who were prepared to relocate was a breach of agreed industrial relations.
However, the court also recommended that the parties return to the decentralisation implementation group to try to agree a long-term solution.
Fás has continued with its policy of linking promotions and the hiring of new recruits to decentralisation since the court issued its recommendation in January. Siptu members responded by balloting by almost nine-to-one for industrial action.
Announcing the ballot result yesterday, Siptu Fás branch organiser Greg Ennis said it sent a "very strong message" to Fás's management. Two weeks' notice of action would be served once it had been sanctioned by the union's officers.
This is expected to happen within the next couple of days.
A spokesman for Fás said the agency was implementing Government policy. It had done as the Labour Court recommended and got in touch with the decentralisation implementation group through the Department of Finance. "We would ask that Siptu would do the same."
He said any recommendations from the committee on the matter would be accepted by Fás.
Minister of State for Finance Tom Parlon, who is overseeing implementation of the decentralisation programme, also asked that "all parties" refer the matter back to the implementation group. "Such central discussions would allow the issues to be teased out with a view to arriving at agreed long-term solutions in consultation with all the parties involved."
