Workers reject Lufthansa proposals

WORKERS at aircraft maintenance firm Lufthansa Technik Airmotive last night rejected the company’s flexibility proposals raising the prospect of up to 465 job losses at the Dublin operation.

Approximately 300 of those workers attended a staff meeting yesterday and, in a close decision of just 40 votes, decided to reject the cost savings proposed by the company.

In advance of the vote, the company had warned it would put a planned $40 million (e30m) investment in its Dublin operation on hold and would not reactivate it if unions rejected management proposals. Without that investment it said the contract for a new engine type would go to another facility within the organisation, leading to a cut in workers’ hours and the wind-down of the Dublin facility.

However following the vote, Ian McDonnell of craft union TEEU said: “As we indicated to them at the time greater consideration needed to be shown for the likely impact the changes would have on workers’ earnings.

“We are prepared to go to a recognised third party such as the Labour Court to find a solution.”

The union said under the company’s proposed changes the shift premium would be reduced from 20% of basic pay to 19% and workers would only be paid for half of the overtime worked each week and would have to ‘bank’ the rest with the company deciding whether it would receive it as cash or as time of in lieu at a later date.

Meanwhile, in an email sent around to non-union workers and seen by the Irish Examiner, employees were told of “the option of having a job and secure employment for the next number of years rather than the prospect of the alternative veto of Lufthansa Technik’s plans”.

A source said pressure had been applied on many staff to fall in line with the trade union vote.