Efforts to resolve the dispute at Irish Ferries are to continue over the weekend, following yesterday's "national day of protest" in which more than 100,000 people took part, writes Chris Dooley, Industry and Employment Correspondent.
Labour Relations Commission officials have maintained contact with the company and Siptu since talks adjourned without agreement at 2.30am yesterday.
Informal contacts will continue today and tomorrow, but talks are unlikely to resume before Monday.
The depth of public feeling about the matter was demonstrated by the high turnout at yesterday's protest marches in nine locations across the State.
The day of protest was called by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions to demonstrate solidarity with the workers at Irish Ferries and to highlight wider concerns about exploitation of migrant workers and the displacement of jobs.
In Dublin, tens of thousands took part in the biggest trade union demonstration since the first of the tax marches in 1979.
Estimates of the turnout varied widely, however, with the Garda press office putting it at "in excess of 40,000" and Ictu at between 80,000 and 100,000.
Ictu said it disputed the Garda estimate and said its own figure was provided by gardaí at the scene.
The discrepancy can partly be explained by the fact that not all those who marched from Parnell Square stayed on for the concluding rally at Merrion Square.
Union leaders pointed to the fact that many non-participants stood to applaud as the march went by as evidence of huge public support for the event.
The Labour Relations Commission's chief executive, Kieran Mulvey, said last night that it had "a very clear idea" of the main difficulties and problems for both parties in the Irish Ferries dispute. "We will continue to work to resolve the difficulties through either informal or formal means," he said.
"It is vital in the interests of the company, its employees and indeed the country that the dispute is resolved on an amicable basis."
Mr Mulvey said this would be difficult to achieve in the current climate, but there was an imperative on everybody involved to try to secure a resolution.
Siptu is in dispute with the company over its plan to lay off up to 543 unionised seafarers and replace them with agency workers from abroad on a wage of €3.60 an hour.
The dispute intensified last month when management moved to implement the plan by placing security personnel, disguised as passengers, on board two of its ships.
A stand-off with ships' officers ensued and sailings of all four of the company's ships remained suspended yesterday as a result.
Ictu general secretary David Begg said the turnout at yesterday's marches provided an answer to those who claimed the trade union movement was finished.
He also rejected criticism by business groups that claimed the protest was unnecessary.
Anyone who had not been on Mars for the past six months would know there was exploitation "in every part of the country", he said.
The business organisation Isme criticised the event, describing it as a "charade" and "ill-conceived".
"The protest is a blatant and extortionate attempt to use a headline case to further Siptu's aims and strengthen its own position when it eventually decides to walk back into the partnership process," said the organisation's chief executive, Mark Fielding.
As well as in Dublin, there were large turnouts at demonstrations at other locations including Cork, Waterford and Limerick.
Taoiseach Bertie Ahern said the Government would respond to the protests by doing everything it could to resolve the Irish Ferries dispute, but he said this might not be achievable.