The Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern, has warned employers that the accession of the new EU member states did not give them a 'green light' to replace Irish workers with cheaper labour.
Mr Ahern told the Dáil that the Government did not allow immediate access to the Irish labour market for the EU accession states in order to allow the displacement of Irish workers.
He told Labour leader Pat Rabbitte that he was not certain what SIPTU wanted the Government to do about the Irish Ferries redundancy row, as the issue was now being dealt with by the Labour Court.
The Taoiseach also criticised the Communications Workers' Union for threatening industrial action to overturn a Labour Court decision.
Mr Ahern said he had criticised such an attitude by employers in Irish Ferries, and he would do the same with workers.
