Aer Lingus and Ialpa hold talks in bid to resolve pilot pay dispute

Aer Lingus has said it is willing to offer pay increases of 12.5%, or above if “improvements in productivity and flexibility” are discussed

Aer Lingus pilots will meet airline management today in a bid to find a breakthrough to the bitter standoff that threatens to ruin summer holiday plans and damage tourism. 

Indefinite work-to-rule action has commenced, with pilots refusing to work overtime, accept changes to set rosters, or take on out-of-hours management requests.

An eight-hour strike is also still planned for Saturday, with the industrial action already leading to 270 flight cancellations.

Separate talks at the Labour Court on Tuesday failed to find common ground for a resolution, with both sides continuing a war of words over the pay demands.

The pilots are seeking a pay increase of 24%, which they say equates to inflation since the last pay rise in 2019.

Aer Lingus has said it is willing to offer pay increases of 12.5%, or above if “improvements in productivity and flexibility” are discussed. It has also said the industrial action from pilots is hurting passengers, airlines, and the Irish economy.

Yesterday afternoon, the pilots group Ialpa said it had accepted an invitation to talks with Aer Lingus as the work-to-rule continues.

They are expected to meet at 9.30am today to start the process.

Earlier, the president of Ialpa Mark Tighe had hit out at what he called “corporate greed” at Aer Lingus and said the industrial action was a direct result of management actions.

“Pilots in the union do not want to be in this situation,” Mr Tighe said.

“This is the middle of the summer, any day (of industrial action) is going to have a significant impact.

“What you see here is the direct result of management actions and their refusal to acknowledge that they should have been dealing with inflation as they went along.”

He accused the airline of moving from a negotiating phase to a “union-busting phase” but added that “everything is on the table” to resolve the dispute.

At airports yesterday, Aer Lingus passengers arrived for the flights that were still going ahead, saying it is a nervous time for air travellers

Government ministers have called for "cool heads" ahead of today's talks and urged both sides to consider passengers impacted by the standoff. 

At airports yesterday, Aer Lingus passengers arrived for the flights that were still going ahead, saying it is a nervous time for air travellers. 

Catherine, who is from Dublin but lives in Minnesota, in the US, said her flight was not affected, but that she had been “anxious” coming up to the departure date.

“I think it’s rotten because it affects so many families going on holidays, but they do it because that’s the height of negotiations. I really feel for families,” she said.

“If you are making record profits, you should give back to the people who took a nosedive during covid, but you also can’t be greedy.”

Another flyer, Diarmuid, who was travelling to France from Dublin Airport, said the pilots “had to do it at some stage”.

“I can see the justification for it. If it’s an all-out strike then we’re in awful trouble, but this work-to-rule has allowed a certain amount of flow of passengers. I’d love more transparency from the company about profit levels,” he said.

Parents travelling abroad with their children spoke of their concerns about whether they would have to break bad news to their children excited about their holidays.

In the Dáil, meanwhile, Sinn Féin TD Louise O’Reilly pressed Social Protection Minister Heather Humphreys at Leaders’ Questions for the Government to take action.

“This is a matter of significant national importance,” she said, accusing the Government of a “dereliction of duty” on the matter.

In response, Ms Humphreys said she understood the frustration of passengers but the Labour Court remains available to both parties as she called for “cool heads” to leave “egos at the door” and sit around the table.

“We’re using the industrial relations machinery which is the mechanism whereby these disputes are resolved,” she said.

In a statement, Taoiseach Simon Harris welcomed the talks that are due to begin on Thursday. A spokesperson said: “All disputes are resolved by compromise and negotiation. The Taoiseach urges both sides to engage in good faith to resolve this dispute.”