Micheál Martin, Tánaiste, has criticised Aer Lingus and the pilots’ union Ialpa for disregarding families anticipating much-awaited holidays abroad amidst the escalating commotion over their dispute. This week, due to the implementation of a work-to-rule that commences on Wednesday, over 200 flights between Wednesday and Sunday from Aer Lingus have been cancelled.
An expansive eight-hour strike, deliberately scheduled to fall on the first day of the national school holidays later in the week, has resulted in at least 120 flights set to leave on Saturday being eradicated from the airline’s timetables.
Flights heading towards famed vacation spots frequented by Irish tourists, such as Faro, Malaga, Barcelona, as well as airports in southern France and across Italy, are included in the list of cancelled flights due to an ongoing pay dispute. Ialpa is demanding a 24% salary hike, which it argues would offset inflation over a five-year span, whilst the management has proposed an initial offer slightly below 10%.
On Monday, Mr Martin expressed his distaste at the aviation parties overlooking the needs of travellers during this conflict and stressed the need for immediate dialogue to avoid more disruptions. He believes Aer Lingus has a mandatory responsibility to push efforts for beneficial discussions that could lead to a resolution.
The Tánaiste made a plea to both parties to consider the multitude of individuals and families whose summer plans will be affected by these flight cancellations. He highlighted their neglect and intentional dismissal in this tug of war between Aer Lingus management and the unions.
Mr Martin stressed the importance of utilising state resources like the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) and the Labour Court to resolve disputes. On his travel to Luxembourg to attend a European Union foreign affairs ministers conference, he expressed this sentiment.
As Wednesday approaches, pressure mounts for government intervention in the dispute, yet high-level insiders believe such involvement holds little value as the contending factions are considerably divergent and the prospects for an accord are grim.
Tensions in the dispute escalated over the weekend when the airline branded Ialpa as guilty of “blackmail”, a claim that the union countered by accusing the airline of “avarice”, and they did not dismiss the possibility of initiating a complete strike.
Ialpa and Aer Lingus management communicated their readiness for discussion on Sunday, while each side points the finger at the other for impeding the substantiative dialogue. This happens as accusations from travel association severely criticize the ‘calculated timing’ of strikes by Aer Lingus’s pilots exacerbating the ongoing row.