The prospect of building lay-offs has increased following the Construction Industry Federation's advice to members to issue protective notice on sites affected by the scaffolders' strike.
The move was described as "a declaration of war" by SIPTU, which said its members would not be intimidated. The strike is unofficial, but workers on a number of sites have refused to pass pickets.
Yesterday these included sites at Beaumont Hospital in Dublin, at Temple Bar and the Dublin Docks, as well as a number around the State, according to Mr Eric Fleming, secretary of the construction branch of SIPTU.
The CIF said in a statement that industrial action "is limited to a small number of high-profile sites". It added, however, "it is acknowledged that the level of disruption may increase significantly over coming days where the need to erect or move scaffolding arises.
"As a result, the CIF is immediately advising members on the necessary steps to take in issuing protective notice and implementing lay-offs where sites can no longer function normally because of the unofficial action".
"This is tantamount to a declaration of war," declared Mr Fleming. "Shop stewards in other sections are not going to be frightened. It's not the kind of activity that is conducive to resolving this problem."
He called on the employers to meet him for talks in the Labour Relations Commission tomorrow. "I am sick of negotiating with them over the airwaves and on the media," he said.
But the CIF held to its stance that it will not talk until the scaffolders remove their pickets. "We call on SIPTU to have the pickets removed so that meaningful talks can take place and serious lay-offs be averted," it said.
In their unofficial action, the scaffolders are seeking pay rises of between 50 and 300 per cent, and improved training and health and safety measures. Mr Fleming said he wanted to talk to the CIF about health and safety, and a register of properly trained scaffolders.
"These people are not professional strikers," he said of his members. "It's 1964 since all building workers went on strike." But, he warned, shop stewards representing other workers would be angered by the CIF advice to prepare to lay people off. What the CIF statement meant, he said, was that the action "is beginning to pinch and be effective". The CIF said it "roundly condemned" the unofficial action by scaffolders and urged member-firms, both main contractors and sub-contractors, to take a firm stand.