Aer Lingus short-haul pilots still need to be convinced deal is right for them

The Irish Air Line Pilots’ Association (Ialpa) has recommended a Labour Court proposal that would give the Aer Lingus pilots a near-18pc pay rise.

However, the loss of an agreement that provided a work-life balance to cockpit crews has already created some resistance to the deal, it is understood.

As the union prepares to ballot its members from next Thursday, Aer ­Lingus won’t have its schedule back to normal until Wednesday, despite pilots ending their work-to-rule.

A total of 87 flights remain cancelled between today and next Tuesday, with Aer Lingus unable to reinstate them.

About 90,000 of the airline’s passengers have been affected by the industrial action, with almost 600 flights cancelled.

The dispute is likely to have cost Aer Lingus tens of millions of euro. That includes the cost of rebooking passengers and refunding them.

They will also have lost forward bookings as customers choose rivals such as Ryanair on short-haul routes and US airlines for destinations to North America.

A 2019 crewing agreement between Aer Lingus pilots and management allowed pilots take a week of their holidays during the busy summer season, which runs from April to October. It also provided other benefits to pilots, with the airline agreeing to hire 60 additional pilots to ensure the new agreement could be implemented.

But the crewing agreement had to be paid for by pilots and was a key issue in the negotiations that culminated in the industrial action at Aer Lingus. It meant the airline had offered a 12.25pc pay increase to pilots, but 3.75pc of that was to pay for the crewing agreement.

Even when the Labour Court issued its first recommendation in the dispute in May, it offered pilots an interim 9.25pc pay increase, with the issue of the cost of the crewing agreement to be decided later.

The Labour Court’s latest proposals envisage the crewing agreement being scrapped entirely, without the pilots having to stump up anything in respect of the years it has already been in place.

But the move will primarily affect more than 450 pilots working on the Aer Lingus short-haul network using its A320 fleet. Under the proposal, they won’t be able to have a week off during the summer period.

However, pilots of the airline’s long-haul A330 jets were already entitled to three weeks’ leave during the summer and that didn’t change under the 2019 agreement. They retain that benefit.

At the eight-hour strike held by Aer Lingus pilots last month, Ialpa president Mark Tighe asked members at Dublin Airport whether they would be willing to sell their working conditions for pay. The resounding response from pilots as they stood in the rain was “No”.

Mr Tighe has insisted the pay deal does not involve any changes to working conditions, however.

The prospect of a 17.75pc pay rise over four years could still be enough to sway short-haul pilots to accept the deal. ­Pilots have also been offered increases in their overnight allowances.

The ballot of Ialpa members at Aer Lingus will start next Thursday and finish the following Tuesday. A majority of just over 50pc is needed for the pay deal to be accepted. Before that vote, the union will hold a number of consultation meetings with pilots at Aer Lingus to provide additional detail on the deal.

Yesterday, Aer Lingus was unable to confirm the restoration of pilot privileges such as access to airport lounges and use of discounted tickets for family trips.

James Lawless, junior minister at the Department of Transport, welcomed Ialpa’s recommendation of the Labour Court proposal and the end of the pilots’ work-to-rule that started on June 26.

“It is deeply unfortunate that so many thousands of people had their travel plans disrupted or cancelled during this dispute, and I hope this announcement now provides some reassurance to those with future travel plans,” he said.

“I am encouraged by the Ialpa executive’s decision to recommend acceptance of the Labour Court’s recommendation to its members. The Labour Court has worked tirelessly with the parties over recent weeks to bring about a resolution to this dispute and has been instrumental in brokering this agreement.”

Taoiseach Simon Harris is pleased with developments, saying: “I welcome the decision by Ialpa to suspend industrial action and recommend acceptance of the Labour Court proposal.

“This is a very positive development for the travelling public and our tourism sector.”