Aer Lingus workers have voted unanimously to proceed with a ballot for industrial action over plans by the company to privatise the airline.
In a meeting their SIPTU representatives at Shannon, workers also overwhelmingly endorsed SIPTU's anti-privatisation campaign.
The union represents 160 Aer Lingus workers at Shannon who are concerned that commitments on staff numbers, pay and conditions may not be met prior to privatisation.
SIPTU has been involved in negotiations on these issues for over a year and admits that the privatisation debate has put enormous pressure on them to conclude those talks.
Balloting of staff will begin in Shannon on Wednesday and the union hopes to have a result by 24 March.
