CCI president condemns transport workers' strike
The President of the Chambers of Commerce of Ireland (CCI) has strongly criticised CIE transport workers for their strike action, for what he coined as "continued efforts to hold the public to ransom in order to frustrate Government policy".
Speaking today on the industrial action by the National Bus and Railworkers' Union (NBRU) and SIPTU, Mark Staunton said, "today's strike seems to have been called solely to allow the workers to vent their frustration. Unions appear to think that this is a sufficient reason to strike".
"The chamber movement supports the Government in its objective of introducing competition in the transport market - the aviation sector has clearly shown the benefits that this will bring to both business and the consumer.
"Lower prices and higher volumes permit bigger profits and greater security of well-paid employment," said Staunton.
Staunton added that though the CCI accepted that some of the concerns raised by the unions are legitimate and deserve to be addressed, he argued that the strike action will ultimately harm the bus workers' interests.
