A THREATENED disruption to Aer Lingus flights, which could have affected up to 20,000 passengers from today, has been averted following a deal reached between management and the trade union Siptu last night.
Aer Lingus chief executive Dermot Mannion said the airline would operate a full service today.
He apologised to passengers for the uncertainty over recent days, but maintained that the issues involved were very important.
Under the deal, management will introduce new work practices for about 1,800 Siptu members at the airline, who work mainly in ground operations, in a move that the company believes will save about €10 million. The deal involves greater mobility and flexibility on the part of existing staff.
In the future, staff will have to work shifts of varying lengths while the company will have the freedom to move personnel between duties, for example between check-in and boarding, in the course of a shift.
However, the deal secures existing pay levels for the staff, which had been a major issue for the trade union. The company will seek to make savings through a reduction in overtime and through the avoidance of recruitment of additional personnel.
It is understood that about €7.5 million will be generated in savings at Dublin airport and €2.5 million in Shannon. Aer Lingus will implement the new work practice changes in the weeks ahead pending a ballot to be carried out by Siptu the week after next.
The company had sought to unilaterally introduce the new reforms from today and had warned staff that they would face suspension from the payroll if they did not co-operate unreservedly.
Siptu had warned that if this happened, it could have lead to a bitter and prolonged dispute at the airline.
Siptu national industrial secretary Gerry McCormack said the union and management had reached " a comprehensive agreement on all the issues outstanding".
He said that Siptu was happy that the deal protected its members' interests and would prevent any changes to pay and conditions being introduced from today.
Mr Mannion said that the discussions were never going to be easy, but that they had been conducted in an amicable manner.
The deal was reached last night after more than 30 hours of talks at a hotel in north Dublin. The negotiations were chaired by the director of conciliation at the Labour Relations Commission Kevin Foley and assisted by a firm of forensic accountants, Grant Thornton.
However, the union and management did not address another contentious issue, the plan by the airline to recruit future employees on lower terms and conditions.
