Aer Lingus pilots are set to recast their votes on the proposed 24 per cent wage increase strike action due to a legal issue the company identified regarding the original voting methods. Wednesday saw the Irish Air Line Pilots’ Association (Ialpa) declare a whopping 98 per cent approval for industrial unrest, from the 98 per cent of eligible voters who participated through digital means. However, on Friday Aer Lingus challenged the validity of Ialpa’s online voting practice, citing statutory requirements for privacy and the constitutional regulations of Ialpa. The airline relayed Ialpa’s intent to conduct a rerun of this ballot via a traditional paper process instead.
In tandem with these events, ongoing discussions between the airline and the union eventually reached an impasse on Thursday evening, due to a reported stalemate and Ialpa’s refusal to continue dialogue at the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC).
Following up on these developments, Ialpa confirmed on Friday that Aer Lingus’ lawyers communicated their doubts surrounding the conduct of the original ballot. In response, Ialpa chose to initiate another vote – this time via paper. The ballot will wrap up on Monday morning at 11am, with voting having commenced right away at both Ialpa’s Woodford offices and at Fórsa’s Cork headquarters.
A message circulated to the union members by Ialpa on Friday revealed that the union expected some form of legal challenge. Ialpa’s president, Mark Tighe, communicated that while they maintain full confidence in the fairness of their procedure, they acknowledged that a recount is a quicker route than a High Court dispute over the matter. Directly addressing the pilots in a video message, he noted their awareness of potential efforts from the company to create doubt around the ballot and votes.
In a statement, Mr Tighe confirmed that Ialpa and Fórsa, through their joint efforts with their legal team, had meticulously scrutinised every tiny detail. The expected solicitor’s letter from the company questioning the validity of the ballot was not left unanswered. However, the team is positive that there is no issue to be addressed.
The magnified housing crisis in Ireland is a smaller representation of the worldwide problem. It’s certain that the majority, nearly 98%, of the members polled and gave an almost identical vote endorsing the plan put forth by Ialpa and Fórsa. The company might anticipate a legal battle, but we wish to steer clear of such prolonged engagements.
Mr Tighe underlined that the decision to reinitiate the ballot would incur only a four-day delay, and the union’s leadership once again advocates for a positive vote towards industrial action. The operative specifics concerning the ballot were also shared with union members.
Despite the dialogues ending on Thursday evening, Mr Tighe highlighted that the company’s rigid stance on adjusting work protocols as a means to finance the proposed pay rise acted as the resolute barrier counteracting a resolution.
Post Thursday evening discussions closing without an agreement, a statement from Aer Lingus cited a lack of satisfactory progress, accusing Ialpa of maintaining unrealistic pay rise demands for pilots, as high as 23.88%, without offering increased productivity or flexibility. The airline proposed continuation of direct discussions to facilitate enhanced pay scales through meaningful productivity and flexibility improvements. They also suggested soliciting the assistance of the Workplace Relations Commission to further investigate potential solutions. Unfortunately, both propositions were declined by Ialpa.