SIPTU yesterday told the Labour Court that business at Aer Lingus was "never better" as talks to avert Thursday's threatened stoppage continued.
The union's opening statement at the Labour Court negotiations was in stark contrast to the message from the special board meeting of the national airline at Dublin Airport, which mandated the management to take four immediate steps to stem spiralling costs:
Review current schedules to match capacity with revised traffic forecasts;
Match staff overtime and other resources to the revised schedules;
Immediately suspend all recruitment, including temporary staff;
Aggressively review all costs.
In contrast to the union submission, Aer Lingus insists that it is facing a real crisis due to the outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease and the deteriorating industrial relations situation - clerical and operative staff are scheduled to ground the airline on Thursday and pilots are seeking a 70 per cent pay increase to bring them into line with their counterparts in British and US airlines.
"All three coming together present real problems for the company", said Mr Dan Loughrey, Aer Lingus's director of group corporate affairs.
SIPTU, in its opening statement at the Labour Court's review of the claim by 3,000 clerical and operative staff for parity with their cabin crew colleagues, was scathing in its criticisms of the management: "Aer Lingus are now attempting to further fuel the already difficult set of circumstances that exist at Dublin, Shannon and Cork airports by creating an impression of a company on the brink of disaster.
"This is being done only 16 days after the chief executive of Aer Lingus told an assembly of general managers and heads of department that it was never in a better state, that they were going up and onward, expanding into new markets, and that they were to advise their staff accordingly."
SIPTU referred to letters, dated November 22nd and December 15th, 2000, which the union claim formed part of its acceptance of last year's clerical and operative agreement with the national airline's former human resources executive, Mr John Behan, and which said: "Should a significantly higher payment be made to any other group, which does not stem from a local productivity issue, we would deem that this payment is also due to clerical workers."
The union is seeking a £1,230 top-of-the-scale increase - conceded to cabin crew - for clerical and operative staff. It also wants the current 18-point scale for administrative grades to be reduced to 15, as is the case with cabin crew, and application of the cabin crew "increased differential" to clerical and operative staff.
Talks on the pilots' dispute were continuing last night at the Labour Relations Commission. Parity with British Airways would mean a new top rate for pilots of £158,000. The company has offered a 10 per cent rise, which would bring the current top rate up to £105,000. Slight progress was reported at the conciliation talks, but the two sides are still a long way from agreement.