'We need solutions': Dublin Airport officials to be grilled on 'wholly unacceptable' delays

Chair of the Transport Committee Kieran O'Donnell said the situation passengers were put in over the weekend was "wholly unacceptable" and must not happen again. Picture: Gareth Chaney/ Collins Photos

Politicians have hit out at Dublin Airport's recruitment and employment policy, claiming it has led to chaos for passengers.

Daa officials are to be grilled on theextreme delays experienced by passengers when they appear before an Oireachtas Committee on Wednesday.

Chair of the Transport Committee Kieran O'Donnell said the situation passengers were put in over the weekend was "wholly unacceptable" and must not happen again.

"We need to see solutions from the Daa as to precisely how they are going to ensure that this is not repeated next weekend, during the June bank holiday.

“Dublin Airport management have been recruiting additional security checkers for the past eight months since October and the current passenger security checking delays situation have been ongoing since March. 

"We need to know from the Daa how many additional security checkers have been recruited for Dublin Airport and how many of these are now working on the ground," he said ahead of the meeting.

Fine Gael senator Emer Currie said airport management have serious questions to answer as they have still failed to explain exactly why delays occurred.

“Daa let go of 1,000 staff members during the pandemic, yet reportedly stated that they hoped to hire 300 security staff before the summer.

“How many of these 300 have been hired and are actually working on the ground? Do they believe these extra 300 staff are sufficient to solve the current crisis?

Staff absences have been cited as contributing to the long delays – can Daa explain why there was a particularly high level of absences on Sunday morning?

Labour TD Duncan Smith said the Daa's recruitment policy has resulted in travel chaos and said the predictable increase in travel demand should have been resourced and prepared for by the airport authority.

He said: “Over the last number of years, the Daa has been pursuing a policy of ‘right-sizing’ their staff which has essentially seen them downsize the workforce. This is having a huge impact on the morale of staff and indeed the recruitment and retention of staff which is leading to these issues.

“The airport traditionally was a very proud place to work but the conditions and pay have diminished so much that it’s now a very difficult place to work.

People Before Profit TD Bríd Smith called for the dismissal of senior managers at the company.

Members of the public at Dublin Airport. Picture: Gareth Chaney/ Collins Photos

“Dublin Airport Authority let go 248 staff through a voluntary redundancy scheme. They then tried to hire new workers for €14 an hour. But the workers were only guaranteed 20 hours work and a further 20 hours were ’flexible’. 

"What sort of a crazy management team could come up with that scheme? Obviously, one that had no idea what it is like to live on €14 an hour in Dublin on a precarious contract," she said.

Meanwhile, Sinn Féin's tourism spokesperson Imelda Munster said the government must step in and address the chaos affecting the tourism industry, citing the ongoing delays at Dublin Airport, the passport office as well as the escalation in hotel prices in recent weeks.

She said that many of these problems were “entirely foreseeable” and with some pre-planning could have been avoided. Instead the country faces significant reputational damage as a result of the chaos in the sector.