Work on a contaminated production line at the Baxter Healthcare company in Mayo will shut down on Monday for approximately four months.
An investigation is under way into the cause of contamination in a number of kidney dialysis products.
Up to 150 workers will be laid-off temporally while repair work is carried out.
Representatives from SIPTU are meeting the production staff to discuss the implications of today's decision.
A compensation deal has been offered to the workers by the company and will be voted on in the coming days.
It is understood that SIPTU has recommended its members to accept the deal.
A company spokesman said the number of contaminated products is very low and that the risk to patients was minimal.
In a statement, the European Medicines Agency said Baxter could not recall all of the products but that supplies would be imported from its other plants in the US, Canada and Singapore to meet the shortfall.
Last November 200 jobs were shed at the Mayo facility because of the global economic downturn. The company has a total workforce of over 1,000 people.
