No one doubts the commitment of the Irish Locomotive Drivers' Association but other unions, as well as Iarnrod Eireann management, seriously question the judgment of its leaders.
So far, ILDA members have spent over £80,000 on legal costs alone fighting for trade union recognition through the courts. Their case is still under appeal to the Supreme Court.
They have found the going tough because industrial relations legislation in this State discourages the proliferation of small unions with narrow sectional interests.
The perceived wisdom is that such a development would see a return to the bad old days of constant industrial strife - not just between unions and employers but between unions and other unions, constantly squabbling over members and territory. The experience of the ILDA so far, would seem to confirm that view.
Its membership is drawn from SIPTU and the National Bus and Rail Union, which have traditionally represented train drivers in Iarnrod Eireann.
Last January the other two unions agreed a new productivity package with the company under the auspices of the Labour Relations Commission. It was supposed to clear the way for negotiations on similar agreements for the other 3,000 workers in the company. Instead, all concerned are now bogged down in a dispute over whether ILDA members are governed by the January agreement.
The association claims a membership of just over 120, or almost half of qualified mainline staff. There are another 30 probationary drivers and 55 DART drivers who are not in the ILDA.
The ILDA says the other unions have no right to sign away its members' rights and it is contemplating a legal challenge to the January agreement on the basis that members cannot be compelled to work Sundays or bank holidays without their consent.
While the January agreement is very attractive in pay terms - it increases basic pay from £14,500 to £29,500 - and reduces the working week to five-day working, it means that drivers rostered to work Sundays and bank holidays will no longer receive premium payments. Another problem is that five-day working will not actually commence until September 2001, because of a shortage of trained drivers.
Earlier this year the ILDA conducted a survey of members and found that 98 per cent felt they should be able to take Sundays off in exceptional circumstances for family or social reasons. Eighty nine per cent felt they should retain double time for working Sundays, although less than half felt they should retain "a visible premium for Sunday work".
The ILDA has made it clear to the company, and anyone else willing to listen, that it is prepared to look at the "template" agreed with SIPTU and the NBRU, provided it is adjusted to meet members' needs. However, it has received no takers. No one wants to open the Pandora's box of union fragmentation.
ILDA executive secretary Mr Brendan Ogle believes the other unions are interested only in negotiating a pay deal for drivers, and not the wider issues. His members are proud of the stand they are taking to maintain the integrity of drivers as a specialised group within the company.