Today Aer Lingus planes are grounded due to industrial action by cabin crew who are members of the IMPACT union. Whatever the reasons for the dispute, the enormous inconvenience caused to passengers is unacceptable. The delays suffered over the weekend and yesterday, due to separate action by baggage handlers, were bad enough. But to have the entire fleet grounded will mean unprecedented disruption to business, the tourist industry and to the travelling public.
A number of disputes at Aer Lingus are coming to a head at once. There appears to be a number of underlying reasons. Like many public sector employees, staff in Aer Lingus feel that private-sector counterparts are doing better out of the economic boom and they want to catch up. Many of those with grievances are in low pay areas. In addition, an inter-union dispute between SIPTU and IMPACT over who represents cabin crew has greatly added to the difficulty of finding a solution.
Some 200 flights are cancelled today, inconveniencing 20,000 intending passengers. Aer Lingus will lose £2 million in revenue but the cost will be far greater in its relations with its customers. And if the industrial trouble continues, it could jeopardise the flotation of the company on the stockmarket planned for early next year. The fact that so many disputes are coming to a head simultaneously raises questions about the attitude of the unions and about management's handling of the situation.
There is no quick solution to the industrial problems at Aer Lingus. The company says it is willing to pay more to some groups - and has offered to improve the pension scheme - but says that it cannot afford all the claims being made. Taken together, if the company paid the cost of the pension improvements, the Programme for Prosperity and Fairness increases and met the demands now being made, the annual cost would be £40 million. This is before any increase for pilots is factored in. With annual profits last year of £56 million, this level of extra cost is clearly unsustainable.
Today's action might have been avoided had it not been for the dispute between SIPTU and IMPACT. The cabin crew were traditionally represented by SIPTU, but large numbers have defected to IMPACT, creating tensions between the two unions. The ICTU tried to arbitrate last week. Inevitably, perhaps, its proposed solution was something of a fudge and the two unions and the company have not since been able to agree a basis on which to negotiate. The search now is for a way forward. Aer Lingus management argues that it must be able to negotiate around one table on cabin crew pay and conditions, whether there are one or two unions on the other side. It goes without saying that none of the disputes can be solved unless the two sides are talking, using the industrial relations machinery if necessary.
The Aer Lingus dispute raises some wider issues. Unrest is evident across the public sector; CIE suffered during the summer, the ESB is also threatened with strike and secondary teachers are planning industrial action. In turn this is threatening the PPF. The difficulties in the airport between SIPTU and IMPACT also reflect wider tensions in the trade union movement. The concept of partnership is under threat and today's stoppage at Aer Lingus is just the latest symptom.