An escalation of the postal dispute is being considered by sub-post office owners if talks between An Post and the Irish Postmasters' Union (IPU) fail on Wednesday.
Last night, sub-postmasters from the West and Midlands staged a protest at An Post's mail distribution centre in Athlone. The protest ended at midnight.
The IPU claims the protest in Athlone and previous ones in Ballina, Mallow and Ballinasloe are spontaneous actions taken at local level and not, as An Post claims, organised centrally by the IPU.
An IPU spokesperson said although the protests were not sanctioned by the IPU, the union did not disapprove of the action and had sympathy for the anger felt by its members involved in the protests.
He said if no agreement could be met in Wednesday's talks then the IPU would ballot its members on withdrawing from all mail services, which would lead to the disruption of over-the-counter postal services such as the purchase of stamps or postage of parcels or registered letters.
Industrial relations consultant Mr Phil Flynn is to act as a facilitator at the talks next Wednesday. The IPU members claim allowances for early morning work are insufficient and that they are not being paid enough for carrying out a number of functions.
About 600 postmasters and postmistresses, who work for An Post as contractors, are involved in the dispute.