A contractor belonged to Aughinish Alumina recently appealed to Ireland's high court for an end to strikes at its plants. It was understood that the root cause of the strike was the workers felt that the wages and benefits were too small.

According to Murphy International Ltd. (MIL), the risk of a company shutting down as a result of the strike could cause serious damage to both the company and the workers. Therefore, MIL was demanding the removal of the union's right to organize action, arguing that this was the result of a secret ballot, which was already illegal.

Rusal's Aughinish Alumina is Europe's largest alumina refining center. The strikes at its alumina plants were bound to hurt local aluminum supplies.