Severe delays around security at Dublin Airport are unlikely to be resolved in the short-term.
That's according to Niall Phillips, aviation sector organiser with SIPTU.
He was speaking as delays are continuing at the country's largest airport, with passengers being advised to arrive several hours before flying.
Those on short-haul flights should get there "a minimum of two hours before boarding", while those going long haul should give themselves three hours.
The CEO of the daa, Dalton Philips, says they are "recruiting aggressively" with a view to solving this problem.
Niall Phillips told Newstalk Breakfast the recruitment process itself could be an issue.
"I have no doubt that the daa are involved in the process - whether it's aggressive, whether it's not.
"But nevertheless for an airport security unit officer... it takes six weeks to train a security officer.
"There's about seven exams that these people have to pass as they go through.
"So recruiting doesn't mean you're always going to get the security officer at the end of it.
"Some people have applied and don't come through at the end of the six week process.
"Training seems to be a bit of an issue - and it's getting the officers trained and getting them on the floor seems to be the issues at the moment".
He says members working in the airport "can't see this being resolved anytime shortly.
"Because of the timeline and the amount of time it takes to train security officers in, this may not be resolved in the short-term".
'Over 1,000 workers have left'
And he suggests the airport may have let too many people go in the last year.
"Over 1,000 workers have left Dublin Airport over the last 16/17/18 months under a voluntary severance scheme.
"The passenger numbers have increased, and there still is not enough staff.
"And I don't know if that can be rectified in the short-term.
"There were some projections earlier on in the year of passengers numbers in Dublin Airport.
"But security officers that were in place, the numbers just weren't going to be enough to meet passenger demand.
"Sometimes they aren't getting the applicants in, or the numbers in that they would hope to get.
"And that maybe a reflection of the terms and conditions that are being offered".
