Aircraft firm to reveal pension details

THE 1,135 workers employees at aircraft maintenance firm SR Technics should find out in the next three days the extent of any shortfall in the company pension scheme.

SR Technics has given an undertaking to the worker unions to release details of the its pensions schemes on Friday after reports emerged it may be under-resourced and that the company would not plug any gaps.

The unions want an immediate meeting with the company because it believes redundancy entitlements for the staff will be significantly less than what they are entitled to.

“Workers feel betrayed by what has happened,” said Pat Ward of SIPTU.

“The company had told us it was making €48 million available to fund the redundancy package. However it turns out that this figure includes over €7m in minimum notice entitlements and the €60% rebate from the exchequer on the statutory redundancy payments staff are entitled to receive anyway.

“The net amount that SR Technics is putting into the kitty for redundancies is €15m.

“This works out at less than four days’ pay per year of service for workers, some of whom have been with the company over 40 years.

“When we pointed out to them that they had committed to use Aer Lingus redundancy terms as the norm for calculating redundancy packages at the plant they denied all knowledge of this until we provided documentary evidence. What they are offering is paltry compared with Aer Lingus rates of six to nine weeks’ pay per year of service.”

Mr Ward said SR Technics was owned by a consortium of the “super rich” from the United Arab Emirates.

“Money is not a problem, just the attitude of the owners, who appear to believe that workers are expendable,” he said.