Fears of rail workers mounting further strikes on 4 of the busiest Christmas shopping days

Two 48-hour stoppages for peak Christmas shopping times are being planned by rail workers who are currently in the midst of industrial action against their employers.

Irish Rail workers yesterday downed tools for the first of their five planned strike days over the coming weeks, and there are fears that they will target four of the biggest shopping days on the calendar coming up to Christmas.

According to the Irish Independent, two further 48-hour strikes will be carried out on December 16 and 17 along with December 23 and 24, meaning that shoppers and commuters will be seriously put out on a usually busy day for the rail network.

"If it takes five [strike] days and indeed more to prosecute and effect that, we will do that and unfortunately that would drag into Christmas and the New Year," said National Bus and Rail Union chief Dermot O'Leary.

The strike is being carried out as rail workers rally against what they describe as a miserly 1.7 per cent pay increase that is being planned by Irish Rail. They are seeking to have their pay increased in line with bus and Luas drivers.

An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar yesterday weighed into the argument, saying that the strikes are unlikely to be of benefit to the workers.

"I think it's unfortunate that in the transport sector it seems it's impossible to come to an agreement without a few days of strike," he said.