Aer Lingus likely to cancel more flights as Labour Court clarifies pilot pay deal

Prospects of further cancellations of Aer Lingus flights grew on Wednesday as the Labour Court clarified key elements of a deal to end a pay dispute that has already hit 82,000 passengers.

The Labour Court on Wednesday responded to a request from Irish Air Line Pilot’s Association (Ialpa) officials to confirm parts of a deal offering members at Aer Lingus pay rises of 17.75 per cent over three years.

The union’s executive had sought the clarification to aid its officials in deciding whether or not to recommend the proposal to pilots, who must vote on it.

Once Ialpa’s executive decides on its position, meetings with members and a ballot will follow, a process that could take several days.

The delay raises the prospect of pilots’ industrial action stretching into next week at least, which is likely to force the airline to cancel further flights as it looks to preserve as many of its services as possible.

Aer Lingus has cancelled 548 flights up to Sunday, July 14th, but with no immediate prospect of pilots ending a work to rule under which they are refusing over time and roster changes, it may have to add to this tally early next week.

Executive members of Ialpa, part of trade union Fórsa, met on Tuesday to discuss a Labour Court recommendation that Aer Lingus increase pilots’ pay by 17.75 per cent to end the dispute.

However, they held off on issuing any recommendation one way or the other to members pending the court’s clarification of several points. The union leaders’ decision on whether or not to recommend that pilots back the deal hinges on the Labour Court’s response.

Whatever position Ialpa officials adopt is seen as crucial to ending the dispute, as its members are likely to support this when they vote.

Aer Lingus has already confirmed it would agree to the deal.

Should pilots not accept the deal, Ialpa is likely to step up current industrial action at the airline which included an eight-hour strike along with the work to rule.

A key issue for Ialpa officials is their understanding of how the terms of the Labour Court recommendation affect different groups within the union. Along with the pay increase, the court recommends replacing Aer Lingus’s two pay scales with just one, boosting allowances and dropping an agreement allowing pilots to take extra summer leave.