Aer Rianta strike called off at last minute
The industrial action, planned for a two hour period between 11am and 1pm, would have severely disrupted flights to and from Dublin, Cork, and Shannon, and affected at least 6,000 travellers.
However, following a day-long series of meetings, today’s stoppage was postponed after the Department of Transport agreed to a series of discussions to begin on Friday, including talks on Shannon’s dual gateway status.
Four unions - SIPTU, Mandate, IMPACT, and the TEEU - are all opposed to Transport Minister Seamus Brennan’s plans to break up Aer Rianta, and had been looking for a third party to independently review the Minister’s plans for the company.
Although that demand was not fulfilled, a meeting with Department of Transport officials yesterday saw a proposal emerge, which was last night cautiously accepted after it was put to the Aer Rianta unions by ICTU.
Crucially, the temporary settlement came after Taoiseach Bertie Ahern made it clear there should be “proper consultation,” and that the Government, and not just the unions, had a role to play in their resolution.
The new proposal will see both sides meeting in a process of engagement on policy issues until December. The Department has agreed that no further proposals or recommendations on Aer Rianta will be brought to Government until at least December 5.
In the meantime, a spokeswoman for Minister Brennan said there would be “a full process of engagement on policy issues, specifically the dual gateway issue, and the second terminal issue, between now and December 5.”
“All engagements between the Department and the unions will recognise the integrated nature of aviation issues, and will be conducted in a genuine and meaningful way,” she said.
An independent chair will also be appointed to discuss conditions of employment, job security, and the pension entitlements of Aer Rianta staff.
The deferment was welcomed by both sides last night, although unions warned that any move to further Aer Rianta’s breakup on the part of Minister Brennan would result in the situation worsening.
SIPTU’s national industrial secretary with responsibility for commercial semi-State bodies, Michael Halpenny said he hoped progress could be made.
“We see this as progress, and an opportunity for both parties to engage in constructive discussions. But we would expect the Government to live up to its word and abide by the proposal both parties agreed on today,” he said.
The TEEU’s Arthur Hall said Minister Brennan would have to do a lot to bridge the gap of trust with which he was viewed by Aer Rianta staff.
“Hopefully we’ve got enough concessions from the Minister to have some meaningful discussions, but there is a trend there on his part, and his record hasn’t been very trustworthy,” he said.
That feeling was echoed by SIPTU worker director Peter Dunne. “Everything is back on the table as far as I’m concerned, but if the Minister takes any further action while these talks are happening it will make things much worse,” he said.
