It is refreshing when, in the middle of a deeply politicised controversy driven by conflicting commercial interests, a rational proposal is made. So it was when chief executive of the Labour Relations Commission Kieran Mulvey intervened in the Shannon/Belfast/Heathrow dispute yesterday and appealed to Aer Lingus management and staff to sit down together and work out their differences.
A threatened two-day strike by Aer Lingus pilots over the terms and conditions that may apply at the airline's new Belfast hub represents the most immediate danger to the company. Some 50,000 passengers will be discommoded if the dispute goes ahead next Tuesday and Wednesday, with damaging financial and public relations consequences for the business. Mr Mulvey believes such damaging outcomes can be avoided if the dispute-resolution mechanisms of the Labour Relations Commission (LRC) are employed.
Of course this is not the issue that has inflamed public, business and political opinion in the mid-west. That matter - the withdrawal of the Shannon/Heathrow service - is outside the remit of the LRC and may have to be addressed in a different forum. The commercial initiative has, however, generated so much emotional and political baggage that it has threatened to overwhelm consideration of specific industrial relations problems. Because of that, the parties directly concerned - Aer Lingus management and unions - should step back and follow the route of mediation rather than confrontation.
As Mr Mulvey observed, the future of the company is under threat not just because of industrial relations issues but arising from the divergent interests of major shareholders. He recognised the frustration of chief executive Dermot Mannion who is trying to grow Aer Lingus quickly as a vibrant commercial enterprise, but believed it was possible to avert the threatened dispute through negotiations.
Agreeing to talk is not a sign of weakness. And it is preferable that negotiations should take place before, rather than after, strike action takes place. That does not mean that vital commercial decisions should be postponed or reversed. But space can be created for unions and management to resolve specific industrial relations issues, within an agreed timeframe and in the absence of a strike threat.
There have been tentative signs that the initiative by Mr Mulvey may bear fruit. His intervention was welcomed on the trade union side. And while Aer Lingus indicated a reluctance to become involved while a strike threat remained in force, that issue is surmountable. Flexibility is important, not just in relation to corporate planning but in responding to the concerns of employees. It may be that the demands and concerns of pilots are unrealistic and would inhibit the company's future development. Such matters should be explored and, if possible, disposed of through negotiation. In the meantime, the travelling public should not be inconvenienced.