Aer Lingus preparing for possible strike

AER LINGUS has admitted it is making preparations for disruptive strikes in spite of further assurances by cabin crew that they will not ground the airline unless provoked by management.

From August 25, the cabin crew members of IMPACT trade union, in a form of industrial action, are to revert to rosters which they worked to until the end of June. That means they will ignore new rosters introduced by the company since then.

The union claims the new rosters have been introduced in contravention of an agreement the two sides have brokered under the auspices of the Labour Relations Commission.

The company and cabin crew have agreed that, to boost productivity, flight hours need to be increased to 850. However, the method by which that figure will be reached has been the subject of dispute resolution for the last two months.

LRC chairman Kieran Mulvey, who is acting as mediator, is to make a binding recommendation on the two sides by the end of the month.

However, the union said the company has jumped the gun by introducing rosters to which it has not agreed.

The union has given little detail on what reverting to the old rosters on August 25 will actually entail. One move almost certain to feature is the resumption of members taking a meal break during the shift.

Senior cabin crew member Zita Wall gave details of the impact the loss of that break is having on her, saying she was working up to 10 hours without a break.

IMPACT assistant general secretary Christina Carney said management now had 14 days to contact the union with any concerns it might have over the reversion to the old shifts.

“We will be detailing with our members precisely how this will be implemented,” she said. “One example will be if someone does double-London (a shift involving two return flights from Dublin to London) that they will take a 30 minute break.

“If they go to Paris and Amsterdam in the one day, at the outstation they will have a 30 minute break free of all duty.”

She reiterated that what the union was planning was not a strike.

“We do not believe the action will have any impact on flight schedules in and out of Ireland and this situation will not change unless the company decides to escalate by taking disciplinary action. The fact we have given 14 days’ notice gives the company, if it wishes, the opportunity to find a solution. We don’t believe flights will be affected.”

Nevertheless, Aer Lingus director of staff relations Sean Murphy told RTÉ that management was developing contingency plans to deal with every eventuality and was taking the notice of industrial action up to and including full strike very seriously.

He rejected claims that staff would not get meal breaks under the new rosters but added cabin crew would have to manage the meal breaks more efficiently.

And he also rejected criticisms that the airline had jumped the gun by introducing the new rosters, saying the move was measured and gradual and that the airline had to make savings.