Irish Ferries is to have talks with union officials after the company was accused of paying a foreign worker slave wages, it was confirmed this morning.
The company said it was not challenging claims by Siptu chiefs that a woman from the Philippines, Salvacion Orge, was being paid just over €1 an hour to work as a hairdresser on the Isle of Inishmore ferry.
Alf McGrath, human resources director of Irish Ferries, said: "I do not have the details of Salvacion Orge's contract because it is a contract between herself and a contracting company.
"As far as I am concerned on the information provided, I am not challenging it."
The country's largest union, one of the two unions which represent Irish Ferries' crew, has claimed Ms Orge was hired by a recruitment agency and was being paid just over €350 a month.
It is understood she was expected to work 12 hours a day, seven days a week, with just three days off a month - the equivalent to just over €1 an hour.
Ms Orge began working as a beautician on the ship on the Rosslare-Pembroke route.
However, the service which she was working on has been closed down following queries about her wages. Irish Ferries said it would contact the union later today to discuss Ms Orge's situation.
"I will certainly deal with it as best I can. If that involves queries concerning employment we will look at that with the union concerned," said Mr McGrath.
He said this was a situation which should not have happened. "It is an aberration, it is an error on our part," he said.
"In terms of the 1,600 employees we have seasonally and permanently, their rates of pay and conditions of those employees are the envy of every other shipping company in Britain and the world."
Mr McGrath said that, when the company became aware of it, it immediately decided the situation was untenable.
It is believed that two other women from the Philippines, who the union has claimed were employed in similar circumstances, have been taken off another ferry and repatriated.
Mr McGrath told RTE radio: "They were dealt with in accordance with the contract that they have, and we were to be absolutely open about this, we were intending to deal with the Inishmore vessel in the very same fashion.
"The person on the Inishmore has become a member of a trade union and the trade union have made representations and in the normal course of events we will meet with them."
Paul Smyth, Siptu branch secretary, said the union would fight for equal pay and conditions for Ms Orge.
The union boss also said Ms Orge was sending up to 80% of her wages back to the Philippines to help look after her children.
"This woman is now a member of Siptu and it is our intention to pursue her case through all the means at our disposal," he said.