THE NATIONAL Implementation Body (NIB) has intervened in the dispute at Aer Lingus, which is threatening to cause serious disruption for passengers in the run-up to Christmas.
The NIB, which is the main troubleshooting mechanism under the social partnership process, has asked the company and trade unions to attend talks today.
The trade union Siptu has served notice for strike action at Aer Lingus to come into effect from November 24th over its plans to cut nearly 1,300 jobs through outsourcing, redundancy and early retirement.
The union has indicated that from that date it could commence either limited industrial action such as work stoppages or a full-scale strike with the placing of pickets.
In a statement yesterday, Siptu's national industrial secretary Gerry McCormack said that the union had been calling for the intervention of the NIB through the Irish Congress of Trade Unions and that it welcomed the development.
Aer Lingus said that it would attend the new talks convened by the NIB. Last week, the airline pulled out of talks with Siptu on alternatives to its cost-containment proposals.
Earlier, in an interim management statement to the markets, the company said that it had no choice but to address what it described as legacy work practices, pay rates and pay inflation.
It said that these were " inappropriate to the business model and the competitive environment in which Aer Lingus competes".
"In a deteriorating operating environment characterised by weak demand and intense competitive pressure," it said, "Aer Lingus is focused on managing the factors within its control to ensure that the business is viable over the long term. It is imperative that the operating cost base is realigned with the group's [current and expected] revenue stream to provide the basis for a sustainable business in the future."
The airline said that sustained cost control was key to ensuring that Aer Lingus could continue to offer a competitive proposition to customers and maximise value for all stakeholders.
"On October 3rd, Aer Lingus announced that the board had agreed to proceed with a cost-reduction programme to deliver the substantial savings required to ensure the group's long-term viability as an independent airline. Since that announcement, Aer Lingus has engaged with unions in order to seek alternative cost reduction proposals to the board-approved plan."
Aer Lingus said that in the absence of alternatives, agreed by the beginning of December, which delivered the equivalent level of annual cost savings, the airline would proceed to implement these proposals.
Last week, Aer Lingus chief executive Dermot Mannion told staff in a webcast that its cost-containment proposals were "unstoppable" and irreversible".
Yesterday, the airline warned the markets in its interim management statement that its losses for this year would be about €20 million.
It also said that the introduction of the new Irish airport travel tax of €10 on each departing passenger would cost it about €30 million next year.
The statement said that the company expected to have to absorb this tax on 75 per cent of bookings from its introduction on March 30th, 2009.