Dock workers at Ireland's busiest container terminal are set to go back on strike, after an arbitrator failed to resolve their differences with management.

Arbitrator Finbarr Flood said there were three areas of difference between Peel Ports-owned Marine Terminals (MTL) and workers at the Dublin terminal over planned redundancies.

He has ruled that both sides should abide by court recommendations on severance packages, that the company needs 30 workers and that the "agreed" selection criteria for compulsory redundancies be implemented.

However, IFW understands that MTL has rejected the rulings, while the workers are also unhappy with them.

As a result, a source close to the dispute said it looked like the strike would now be back on, although it was not clear when action would re-start.