Travel benefits for striking Aer Lingus pilots suspended “until further notice”

In a document sent to all pilots, management announced that it would cancel flight privileges, including low-cost tickets, change sick leave policies due to increased absenteeism, and prohibit the use of parking spaces during the strike.

Some pilots are known to commute from their work location abroad, taking advantage of travel privileges.

But today’s talks give passengers new hope that a long-running pay dispute can be resolved. The talks are due to take place at 9.30am at the Maldron Hotel near Dublin Airport after the Irish Airline Pilots’ Association (Ialpa) accepted an invitation from the airline for face-to-face talks.

Passengers ‘concerned’ about industrial action at Aer Lingus

Yesterday, an indefinite shift began according to regulations, and an eight-hour strike is planned for Saturday. The pilots are demanding wage increases totaling almost 24 percent, which will be paid out gradually over three years.

The Labour Court has asked Ialpa not to intensify its action until the dispute is examined on July 1, but no commitment has been made.

In the letter to the pilots, the airline issued a series of warnings and threatened pay cuts if unofficial measures were taken.

Aer Lingus said its priority was to mitigate the significant disruption caused by the union’s planned industrial action and that it would rebook affected customers where possible.

The letter said the measure was clearly aimed at thwarting any efforts by the airline to avoid significant flight cancellations.

“As a result, and effective June 26, 2024, all travel privileges and tickets (including those already issued) for Ialpa/Fórsa members participating in this industrial action and their eligible relatives… will be suspended until further notice,” said the letter from Chief Operations Officer Adrian Dunne.

He said all travel privileges bookings already made for the remainder of June and July would be cancelled and refunded, and that bookings beyond that period would be reviewed.

The “private and confidential” message said it was inaccurate for Ialpa or Fórsa to speak of a “strict service to the rules” and claimed it went “far beyond that”.

“It is very unfortunate that the Ialpa community is now taking an escalated course of action that will not only harm our business, but will also significantly disrupt the travel and vacation plans of so many of our valued customers during our busy summer season,” it said.

The letter said the measure was clearly aimed at undermining all efforts by the airline to avoid major flight cancellations in the short term and would have a negative impact on pilot training.

This became known when Aer Lingus unexpectedly invited Ialpa for talks yesterday.

This follows unsuccessful informal talks before the Labour Court earlier this week.

It is unclear whether Aer Lingus will change its negotiating position in today’s talks, and Ialpa has already stated that it has no mandate to discuss issues the airline wishes to raise.

It appears that the airline’s stance on flexibility and productivity changes to raise Aer Lingus’ salary offer above 12.25 percent remains unchanged.

At the same time, the letter to the pilots warns that any action that violates agreements or contractual obligations will be considered unofficial industrial action.

Those involved will be immediately removed from the payroll or held personally liable for any losses.

“To avoid misunderstandings: If a pilot partially completes a duty period specified in the duty roster, a proportionate deduction must be made from his salary,” it said.

The letter stated that pilots were not allowed to wear their uniforms when on picket lines.

The airline warned that it would take “appropriate action” if there continued to be a significant increase in pilot absences or lack of flexibility outside of official industrial action.

The letter states that there has been a significant increase in “ad hoc” pilot sickness absences. It states that yesterday’s sick leave policy will be temporarily changed so that any pilot on sick leave will be required to provide a medical certificate from the first day of their absence.

In addition, pilots participating in the weekend strike will not be allowed to use the airline’s employee parking spaces at Dublin and Cork airports during the work stoppage.

The letter stated that they were not allowed to wear their uniforms while on picket lines.

Other Aer Lingus employees, including cabin crew, received pay rises of 12.25 percent under a deal that runs from last year to next year. Last October, pay was increased by 5.75 percent, or €1,840, whichever is higher; 3.5 percent was granted from January 1 this year; and 3 percent is scheduled to take effect from January 1 next year.

In addition, there will be a one-time tax-free voucher payment worth 750 euros on October 1st of this year.

An Aer Lingus spokesman said: “The business trips of pilots involved in the industrial action have been suspended.”

“The aim is to create additional space to accommodate passengers whose ability to work has been affected by the ongoing industrial action that began on 26 June and the strike on 29 June.”