Sacked P&O seafarers voiced outrage as they protested at Larne Port in sight of the ferry they were escorted off 24 hours earlier.
The dismissed crew were joined by trade union representatives, politicians and members of the public to demonstrate about the company’s move.
As anger over the workers’ treatment continued to mount in Larne, hauliers and retailers were drawing up contingency plans to ensure goods continue to flow across the Irish Sea during the anticipated week-long suspension of the Larne to Cairnryan route.
Efforts were being made to divert business to operators sailing from Belfast Port, although some level of disruption is still expected in the coming days.
Several seafarers from rival operator Stena Line, which sails out of Belfast, joined the sacked P&O workers in Larne to show solidarity with them on Friday afternoon.
Dismissed staff with decades of experience working for P&O voiced disgust at their treatment, with some describing how they were escorted to their cabins by private security guards before being led off the vessel on Thursday.
The ferry, the European Causeway, remained docked at the port of Friday with members of the replacement crew visible on board.
Danny McDonald, who worked as an assistant manager on board, said he was made to feel like a criminal when two security guards escorted him to his cabin to collect his possessions after he was sacked on Thursday.
“I felt very like I’d done something wrong, I felt like I was in trouble, like I was being arrested,” he told the PA news agency.
“I’ve been working on there for 17 years, so that’s my life and all my stuff is in my cabin.
“I got most of my stuff, but it’s your home and I was walking off the ship with my suitcase and bags of everything and they didn’t give us any help.
“I was dropping stuff as I was walking off. There was a coach bus sitting on the link span with crew waiting to go on once they got the last P&O crew member off. So they had the crew ready, it was all planned. And no-one told us anything, other than you just need to get off the ship.”
He added: “I felt like it was a dream, I didn’t feel real. I actually thought I was under arrest. You’re actually being followed around.
“That’s our home for six months of the year, that’s my life and to wake up this morning I just thought it was a bad dream and then realised I have no job.”
Gail Dowey had worked for P&O since joining the company in 1994 straight from school.
Ms Dowey, who is also an RMT union official, was at home when she received the news that she was being immediately sacked.
“It was absolutely a complete bolt from the blue and I just did not see it coming,” she said.
“That has been our lives, everyone in P&O has long-term service. P&O pride themselves in most of their employees being 20-plus years, generations of families have worked for this company.
“We’ve all worked together for so long, we are like family. We live on the ship for two weeks, it’s not a nine-to-five job that you walk away from.
“Everyone is just devastated. I spent all day yesterday as the union rep taking phone calls from my colleagues – grown men crying and asking me how are they going to drive home and tell her wife and children that they have no job, that their career is over?”
She said staff on board felt intimidated by the private security guards. Ms Dowey said some of her colleagues were threatened that handcuffs would be used if they resisted.
“It was an absolute hostile takeover, bully-boy tactics – it’s just absolutely devastating,” she said.
“The guys and girls that were on board yesterday felt threatened, intimidated.
“Two security accompanied each P&O full-time crew member to their cabin and told them they had five minutes to lift a bag and get out – not all of their belongings, just a bag.”
Ms Dowey did not get the chance to board the vessel to retrieve her own possessions.
“All of our personal belongings are in our cabin,” she said.
“I’ve been on that ship 15 years maybe – our TVs and all our belongings are there and they won’t let us on board.
“They said they’ll pack it up and it will be delivered by DHL or some sort of shipping company.
“It’s just unbelievable. Thirty years I’ve served, worked through a pandemic, and this is how we’re treated.
“It was a hostile takeover and the crew on board yesterday felt threatened – we’re just devastated, absolutely devastated to be treated like this.”
Stena Line seafarer and RMT member Darren Doherty said he felt it was important to attend the protest.
“We’re here to stand shoulder to shoulder with our brothers and sisters as a trade union to say that we’re absolutely disgusted that this decision has been made by P&O,” he said.
“It’s an absolute disgrace.”
Police maintained a low-key presence at the protest, with several PSNI cars parked a short distance from the demonstration.
Politicians from the DUP, Sinn Fein, UUP and People Before Profit were among those in attendance.
Stormont MLAs in relevant Assembly committees called an emergency informal meeting online on Friday afternoon to discuss the situation.
Meanwhile, Aodhan Connolly, director of the Northern Ireland Retail Consortium, said the suspension of the P&O sailings across the Irish Sea would create challenges but the situation was “manageable” in the short term.
“P&O sailings are a key part of our retail logistics infrastructure and the ongoing situation will put pressure on supply chains,” he said.
“While this is currently manageable, the longer the disruption continues, the higher the likelihood is that we could start to see some issues.
“Retailers are working with government to mitigate against this disruption, and we hope an effective resolution can be found quickly.”
