Income support payments for farmers could be hit by a dispute involving civil servants in the Department of Agriculture.
Some 900 clerical officers in about 30 local offices began industrial action yesterday over what they claim are insufficient promotional opportunities.
The action, involving a refusal to handle telephone and fax queries, is to be escalated next week if the dispute is not resolved.
The Department's head office in Kildare Street in Dublin is not affected by the dispute.
Mr Eoin Ronayne, of the Civil and Public Service Union, said the next phase was likely to be a withdrawal of over-the-counter services.
The union's national committee for agriculture would meet tomorrow to review the dispute, he said, and the intention was to have a "rolling escalation" of the action.
A spokesman for the Department said services had not been affected by the dispute at this stage. "We just have to wait and see how things develop."
It is thought that a continuation of the dispute, however, would affect the processing of income support payments and other grants to farmers worth up to €1.7 billion a year.
The Department spokesman said a management services unit was examining the demands on local offices and staff needs.
