Workers at Dublin Airport are considering a plan to field candidates in next year's local elections as part of their campaign against the break-up of Aer Rianta.
The proposal has been discussed in detail by the civil aviation branch of SIPTU and will shortly be put to other unions.
The branch secretary, Mr Dermot O'Loughlin, said it had been received "with enthusiasm" to date and he believed there was a 75 per cent chance of the idea being implemented.
Research carried out by the branch, he said, indicated that single-issue "Save the Airports" candidates could win half a dozen seats on both Fingal County and Dublin City Councils.
He had also discussed the idea with workers in Cork yesterday, and found there had been similarly "enthusiastic support".
Union activists believe the plan has particular potential in Dublin because of the large number of Aer Rianta workers living in constituencies in the vicinity of the airport.
A survey conducted by SIPTU's civil aviation branch last month indicated that 90 per cent of the company's staff lived in one of five Dublin constituencies or in Meath.
TDs from the six constituencies concerned - Dublin North, Dublin North Central, Dublin North East, Dublin West, Dublin North East and Meath - have been invited to a meeting of airport workers tomorrow to outline their views on the planned break-up.
Unions are opposed to the plan by the Minister for Transport, Mr Brennan, to dismantle Aer Rianta and replace it with separate management boards for the State's three main airports.
At tomorrow's lunchtime meeting at Dublin Airport, which is likely to be attended by up to 400 workers, each political grouping will be asked to state its position on the issue, before taking questions.
Mr O'Loughlin said only two of the 22 TDs from the six constituencies, Mr John Bruton of Fine Gael and Mr G.V. Wright of Fianna Fáil, had indicated to date that they would not be able to attend. "The intention is to secure pledges of support for our campaign or otherwise, as the case may be," he said.
A decision on fielding candidates in the local elections would probably be taken in the next couple of weeks, he said.
The survey carried out last month, which was responded to by 700 workers, provided an indication of the level of support such candidates could receive, he said.
Respondents were asked how many people aged 18 and over lived in their households, and the result was an average of 3.37.
That suggested there was a potential 5,000 votes available from houses with Aer Rianta workers, said Mr O'Loughlin. The company employs almost 1,400 at Dublin Airport.
Unions are currently balloting on industrial action at Dublin, Shannon and Cork airports over Mr Brennan's plans. A result will be known on Saturday, but no immediate action is likely.
