Workers at EBS may defer a one-day strike scheduled for tomorrow over the Government’s blocking of a Christmas bonus payment to about 300 staff at the former building society after their union agreed to talks at the Labour Relations Commission.

The Unite trade union said it had accepted an invitation to meet at the LRC and that the strike action may be deferred by a week to facilitate further negotiations if an agreement was forthcoming. Unite says the average earnings of the staff in question is €30,000 per annum.