Talks aimed at averting industrial action at Aer Lingus took place at the Labour Relations Commission (LRC) today.
Representatives of Siptu, the main union at the airline, met with LRC facilitators this afternoon, as requested by the National Implementation Body, to explore possible alternative savings at Aer Lingus to those proposed by management.
The LRC intends to meet with Aer Lingus management tomorrow to see if it feels there is a basis for further engagement with the union on Sunday, Siptu national industrial secretary Gerry McCormack said tonight after the meeting.
In a statement yesterday evening, the National Implementation Body (NIB) said the dispute, which centres on management's plans to cut nearly 1,300 jobs and replace staff with outsourced contracts, needed to be addressed as a "matter of urgency”.
In a €74 million cost-cutting package, the airline wants to outsource ground operations, close cabin crew bases in Shannon and Heathrow, and use American crews on some transatlantic routes.
Siptu, the main union at the airline, has served strike notice on Aer Lingus, which would come into effect on Monday, November 24th. The union, which last night accepted the LRC offer to attend talks this afternoon, is proposing an alternative to outsourcing arrangements planned by Aer Lingus.
Aer Lingus corporate affairs director Enda Corneille said yesterday management accepted the intervention of the LRC but it was "imperative" that by Monday the outlines of any cost-saving plan should yield €50 million in staff-cost savings, and that it was a feasible plan.
He said that Aer Lingus staff had average pay increases of 8 per cent every year for the last three years. The alternative solutions, he said, must address the "untenable" rates of pay at the airline.
The NIB said it believed there was a need for a competitive standard in the airline to ensure viability. But it stressed the exploration and assessment by the LRC would take place without prejudice to the position of either party.
“The body believes that solutions need to be urgently found to the current difficulties,” the NIB statement said. “In this regard, the body notes that the parties are agreed that such solutions must offer long-term viability and stability for both the company and its workers,” it said.
The commission must report its findings to the NIB by Monday, when it will assess the situation in a bid to finding a solution.
Earlier talks at the LRC between management and unions broke down at the end of last month, with both sides accusing the other of not engaging fully with the process.