Workers who have been staging an unofficial protest at the gates of Tara Mines in Co Meath have now called off their action following an agreement brokered overnight at the Workplace Relations Commission.
Workers will meet to discuss the agreement on Monday night before a ballot is held on Tuesday.
The results of that ballot are expected to be known on Thursday, the day before the zinc mine temporarily closes.
SIPTU, Connect and Unite trade unions have recommended the acceptance of the proposals that were brokered following close to 15 hours of talks.
The unions, which represent 650 workers at the mine, say it will provide enhanced support for workers laid off during the temporary closure.
However they are also calling on the Government to do more to improve social welfare supports for those workers.
"Ultimately, we have a document now that we're recommending," said John Regan, SIPTU sector organiser who was at the site near Navan, Co Meath to meet with shop stewards.
He said the document covered a wide range of issues including financial supports, social welfare, health insurance and the possible option to take early retirement.
Mr Regan said there was also a pathway for the return to work with the existing terms and conditions of employment for workers were now fully protected.
"We have now secured this set of proposals that all the workers pay and conditions are going to be the same when they come back, whenever that is, and that's a crucial part of this."
Close to 100 workers could remain at the mine after it closes to maintain it during its period of care and maintenance, which it is set to enter on Friday.
Adrian Kane, SIPTU Divisional Organiser said it is very important they have a commitment that their members will return to Tara Mines after the lay off period under the current terms and conditions of employment.
Speaking on RTÉ's Saturday with Áine Kerr, he said in the meantime there is a modest retention allowance which they had called for from the beginning of the temporary closure announcement.
"We have got a proposal in that regard."
He also said there is an improvement in the number of people who will be retained to do the work around care and maintenance at the mine.
"There is a commitment for continued engagement with the unions," he said.
He added that there will be a formal review of the proposals in mid October.
We need your consent to load this rte-player contentWe use rte-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences
He said the agreement with management was not entered into lightly.
The parent company of Tara Mines, Boliden Tara Mines, confirmed that agreement had been reached on "a number of measures".
In a statement, Boliden said the measures include "support packages for employees during the period of care and maintenance, the care and maintenance plan and a review process."
The company said that the mine will enter "care and maintenance" from Friday 14 July.
"The decision has been taken to safeguard the long-term future of the mine and the management team will remain in dialogue with employees and stakeholders throughout this period," Boliden added.
Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment Simon Coveney has welcomed the agreement, saying that the "Government will now continue to work with the company to protect jobs at Tara Mines and ensure full operations return as soon as possible".
"This is a positive development and as a Government we will continue to work with trade unions and with the company management and if necessary with the parent company to ensure that as this facility moves into care and maintenance.
Mr Coveney also said that the Government would "ensure... that we make that period as short as possible so that we can look after families employed there and many of the contractors linked to it, so that we can get this mine open again as soon as possible when conditions allow."
He said the Government will be working to make sure they can contribute to those efforts over the next few weeks and months.
"I see Tara Mines as a strategic asset for the state.
"It's the largest zinc mine in Europe and zinc is very important for our future and for the futures economic development of the future of the EU.
"And we need to act within the State aid rules to be helpful and ensure this is a mine that has a future."
Additional reporting Cathy Halloran
