Over 40 retained firefighters in Waterford and Tipperary, who are members of the Unite trade union, are engaging in strike action.
Unite is accusing the Local Government Management Agency (LGMA) of refusing to engage with it regarding a number of issues and said its members are staging a one-day work stoppage today.
Retained firefighters are seeking improved pay and conditions as well as structured and predictable "off-call" times.
"Unite members working as retained firefighters are committed to serving their communities and are eager to engage with the local authorities, represented by the LGMA, to resolve the issues in dispute," said Unite Regional Officer Eoin Drummey.
"Those issues range from pay to predictability of working time and inflexible home location requirements."
"However, the LGMA refuses to engage with Unite," Mr Drummey said.
The majority of the country’s retained firefighters are represented by SIPTU and its members engaged in industrial action last month in a dispute over pay and conditions.
The Labour Court held a hearing on the dispute on 26 June and is due to issue a recommendation in the coming days.
"The LGMA, on behalf of local authority management, and SIPTU have engaged in a process through the Labour Court with regard to the same matters raised by Unite in relation to the Retained Fire Service," the LGMA said in a statement.
"It would not be appropriate for management to engage in a separate process with Unite while the matter is the subject of a process involving SIPTU who represent the majority of 2000 Retained firefighters across 26 counties," the agency added.
