Minister for Justice Helen McEntee has said "there is time" to resolve the dispute over garda rosters.
Speaking in Dublin, the Minister said: "What was really clear here is that everyone has the same objective, it is that we negotiate a new roster, that we don't stay on the current Covid roster nor do we stay on any previous rosters for any length of time."
Ms McEntee said Garda Commissioner Drew Harris was meeting with the Garda Representative Association (GRA), the Association of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors (AGSI), Superindentents and Chief Superindentents in separate meetings this week.
Tomorrow, members of the GRA will withdraw voluntary overtime and no voluntary overtime will be undertaken on five consecutive Tuesday in October.
They are also planning to withdraw all labour entirely on 10 November if the dispute over rosters is not resolved.
"Despite the challenges in the weeks ahead the Garda Commissioner has reassured me that there will still be a full compliment gardaí, there will be enough members to continue to do the work that they do every da, whether its tomorrow of the following Tuesday," the Minister said.
"There is time here to negotiate, to double down, to try and find the solution, and that is a new roster," Ms McEntee said.
Yesterday, Minister McEntee said she was not prepared to intervene directly in the dispute, saying it was not the role of the minister to direct gardaí on where, when, or how they work.
She added today: "I am encouraging everyone because the alternative here is that I would intervene and direct what roster should be in place, we have moved away from that type of policing, we should never be in a situation where the Minister for the day is telling gardaí where and when and how they should be working."
Call for roster postponement
Earlier, the GRA called for the introduction of the new rosters to be postponed.
Rank-and-file gardaí want to maintain the roster system introduced at the start of the pandemic which sees gardaí working four 12-hour shifts on consecutive days, followed by having four days off.
They also want Mr Harris to defer the 6 November deadline for the new roster.
Garda management wants to revert to the previous regime which involved six 10-hour shifts, followed by four days off.
According to the GRA, the previous system was used at a time when garda numbers were higher and that, with fewer gardaí now available, it would not function well.
Speaking to RTÉ's Morning Ireland, President of the GRA Brendan O'Connor said they want the introduction of the new rosters to be postponed until all sides can come up with a solution.
Mr O'Connor said members remain committed to finding a resolution to the dispute.
He said: "There's an impasse here, which is we believe a precondition imposed by the Garda Commissioner, who is insistent that our members will return to a roster that is by the minister’s own statement, is less than ideal.
"Actually an independent analysis commissioned by the Commissioner says it doesn't work."
Mr O’Connor added that they are asking for a deferral of imposing the roster to allow the process to move forward.
