Aer Lingus pilots vote 'overwhelmingly' in favour of industrial action

Aer Lingus aeroplanes at Dublin Airport. Picture: Leah Farrell/© RollingNews.ie

Pilots in Aer Lingus have voted "overwhelmingly" in favour of industrial action in a dispute over pay.

Members of the Irish Air Line Pilot's Association (IALPA) voted 97.7% in favour of taking industrial action up to and including strike.

Aer Lingus pilots are seeking wage hikes of over 20% after rejecting a pay rise of 9% brokered at the Labour Court last week.

If a strike does go ahead, it could cause chaos for passengers this summer.

Commenting on the result of the ballot, IALPA president, Captain Mark Tighe that Aer Lingus pilots are "determined to secure a fair and reasonable pay rise after years of inflation."

The ballot result comes after 48 hours of intensive talks between IALPA and Aer Lingus management, and talks are continuing this evening.

According to Mr Tighe, members want their "fair share of the large profits that Aer Lingus are making."

"Last year, they reported €225m profit – an increase of 400% on the previous year," he said.

He went on to compare to British Airways, the sister airline of Aer Lingus, who has "essentially the same operating margin" yet awarded its pilots a 24% increase in 2019.

"Other pilots in Europe secured above-inflation pay increases, including those in Lufthansa who got 27% and Virgin Atlantic who were offered 29%," Mr Tighe added.

He says pilots have not had a pay increase at the company since 2019, and made "enormous sacrifices to save Aer Lingus during the pandemic."

"Now that the company are making bumper profits, it is only fair that our pay keeps up with inflation, and that we have the same purchasing power today as we did in 2019”.

“During the pandemic, the company also introduced lower pay scales for new entrants. However, management failed to reverse this measure when the pandemic ended, even though they are now making huge profits.

“It is vital that all pilots in the airline receive equal pay for equal work."

Captain Tighe concluded: “IALPA’s claim for a 23.8% pay increase over three years is in line with the average increase enjoyed by workers across the Irish economy. 

"This is a reasonable and affordable claim for a profitable company such as Aer Lingus.”

Last week, IALPA members voted overwhelmingly to reject a Labour Court recommendation of a 9.25% pay rise, which was significantly below the almost 24% increase they were seeking.

In a statement this evening Aer Lingus said they noted the outcome of the pilot's vote.

"Any decision by IALPA to now serve notice of industrial action would be entirely unnecessary and regrettable and would result in significant disruption to the airline’s customers and to other employees."

"Notwithstanding the ballot outcome, at this time direct discussions with IALPA are ongoing. Aer Lingus is also willing to request the support of the Workplace Relations Commission in order to further explore solutions.”