February 16, 2011
By Staff Reporter
Aer Lingus cabin crew said they will go ahead with one-day stoppages on Thursday — the eve of the Halloween bank holiday weekend — and again on Monday despite eight hours of talks in the Labor Court last Sunday aimed at resolving the dispute.
The Aer Rianta group of unions served two weeks’ strike notice on Monday about government plans to break up the airport authority.
Strike action by the five unions would almost certainly close the country’s three airports.
Aer Lingus said it was disappointed that the IMPACT trade union representing the cabin crew had refused a court request to defer their strikes pending consideration of a recommendation to settle the row.
The airline describes it as a dispute that need not take place and said it would continue to fly the estimated 20,000 passengers on about 140 flights on Thursday despite the strike threat.
The cabin crew have been engaged in an escalating work-to-rule about pay increases due in October 2002 and July 2003.
The row centers on productivity concessions due for the pay raises under the Program for Prosperity and Fairness and Sustaining Progress pay deals.
“A commitment to ongoing change in return for pay increases is a key part of the transformation strategy and is vital to ensure the continuing reduction in costs and the improvement in productivity and efficiency,” the airline said.
The Aer Rianta unions said they were giving Transport Minister Seamus Brennan “breathing space to engage in serious negotiations.”
Brennan said the break-up of Aer Rianta into three separate authorities is government policy and would be going ahead but he would engage in talks.
The strike notice was served after the unions said they had considered the absence of any reply from Brennan to an Oct. 7 ICTU letter seeking discussions under the auspices of an independent facilitator.
“We find ourselves with no option other than to resort to a campaign of industrial action, which has been approved overwhelmingly by our members in a secret ballot vote,” Mick Halpenny of SIPTU said on behalf of the unions.
“No action will take place until Nov. 4. This affords the minister a further two weeks to respond in a reasonable manner. Failing this industrial action will take place in all three airports — Dublin, Cork and Shannon.
“This will be followed by a rolling campaign involving various types of action. Adequate notice will be issued in each instance,” he added.
“This will continue until a proper independently chaired, substantive talks process is put in place to address all the issues concerning the Aer Rianta workforce.
“We are also seeking a meeting of the National Implementation Body to consider the minister’s failure to accede to a reasonable request.”
Meanwhile, Aer Lingus has cancelled 26 flights planned for Thursday as a result of the strike threat from about 1,000 cabin staff. Outside aircraft are being chartered in to keep most of the day’s schedule intact.
Seamus Kearney, Aer Lingus operations manager, said the vast majority of passengers would be catered for.
He refused to disclose the cost of Thursday’s pre-bank holiday bailout that will see charter aircraft on the routes manned by non-Aer Lingus pilots and crew.
“The reason we are bearing the cost is to carry our passengers. We have about 20,000 passengers booked and we have plans to carry out 17,500 of them,” he told RTE.
Staff are making alternative arrangements for the other passengers.