Unions representing workers at Dairygold have rejected proposals for 500 redundancies by the end of the year.
The company, which announced its intention to shed jobs last July, confirmed earlier today that it was looking to cut the workforce in response to pressures on international markets that saw it profitability drop by €20 million this year.
However, SIPTU, which represents the majority of workers with the company, has accused it of a breach of faith and rejected any forced redundancies.
The company has said that unless it receives enough applications by next Monday it will enforce compulsory redundancies from December 17th.
Earlier today, SIPTU branch secretary Mr John Cooney told RTÉ News that the proposals announced by the company yesterday were not acceptable now and would not be acceptable in the future. He said the company had told the union that the proposals were non-negotiable.
The Labour Relations Commission has intervened in the dispute and is in contact with both sides.
The company has also indicated that there may be further job losses at a later stage, but did not say when or how many jobs would be involved.