The union Impact has accused the Government of failing to implement new legislation aimed at protecting temporary workers in the civil service.
Union representatives yesterday walked out of talks with the Department of Finance "because of civil service management's dogged refusal to implement the law of the land".
Impact official Mr Peter Nolan said the trade union would now trigger 93 legal cases, which were already prepared, against civil service employers. Several test cases are initially to be brought before a rights commissioner.
Mr Nolan said the Protection of Employees (Fixed Time Workers) Act, which gave temporary workers the same rights as staff, had yet to be implemented in the civil service despite coming into force almost a year ago.
"The civil service is continuing to discriminate on basic standards like pay, pensions and entitlement to promotion."
He said management only agreed to meet unions on the issue yesterday. At the meeting management said it had referred the matter to the Attorney General on undisclosed grounds.
"What message does it send to employers if the civil service refuses to implement workplace protections that have been endorsed by the European Union and Dáil Éireann?"
The Act makes it illegal for employers to discriminate against temporary workers unless there are "objective grounds" for variations in pay and conditions.
