In the last three weeks there has been industrial action in protest against unilateral steps of the company to outsource 130 workplaces in distribution Coca Cola workers in Ireland. Unwilling to compromise, on September 7 the company made redundant the workers which jobs were to be outsourced.

 
The company claims economic necessity for the move. At the same time, on September 18, in the middle of the conflict, a capital return which will basically cash out an additional 584 million Euros to shareholders was announced. CCHBC also currently conducts a share buy back program that almost daily spends hundreds of thousands of Euros buying back its own shares.

That same day, a Labour Court Hearing resulted in recommendations favourable to the Services, Industrial, Professional and Technical Union (SIPTU), of which Irish Coca Cola workers are members, namely, that unionized workers should receive a more favourable redundancy package, and that a feasibility study should be discussed to preserve part of the workplaces.

Affiliates in Coca-Cola HBC have expressed their solidarity with the workers and protest against the companies actions in letter to Ms. Libbi McKnight. The IUF has coordinated solidarity actions among other CCHBC workers.  The IUF Global Alliance of Coca Cola Workers, has also sent a letter to Ms. Libbi McKnight, signed by union leaders representing all Coca Cola workers affiliated to the IUF. The Latin American Federation of Coca Cola Workers (FELATRAC), joined this initiative.

Up to date, this situation is unsolved and the different union structures of organized Coca Cola workers around the world are alert following the development of this dispute and willing to keep supporting SIPTU and their local industrial actions.