Aer Lingus Flight Crew Industrial relations thread 2024

Aer Lingus management and the pilot union have agreed to meet next Tuesday in an effort to seek a pay deal as balloting continues for industrial action at the airline.

In a letter from the airline to pilots at Dublin and Cork on Friday, Aer Lingus has accused the Irish Airline Pilots’ Association (IALPA) of pursuing a strategy of exerting pressure on the company as the key summer season gets underway.

And the airline has warned pilots that the ballot for industrial action will likely see them make the “most critical vote” of their careers at Aer Lingus.

https://www.independent.ie/business/irish/aer-lingus-and-pilot-union-to-meet-next-tuesday-as-strike-threat-looms/a2051608177.html

Prehaps a new low cost branch is on the way, surly that's what they warning is implying.

Pilots vote in favour of industrial action.

https://www.rte.ie/news/2024/0612/1454255-aer-lingus-ballot/

Looks like neither side is willing to budge, IALPA has rejected Aer Lingus’ request to return to the WRC, and Aer Lingus isn’t willing to increase its offer without productivity changes.

7 days notice if going on strike

And don’t quote me, but if it’s work to rule that can start immediately!?!

Im not so sure!?! 330 crews are already work to rule and have been since last summer, and there was never a ballot on that. Work to rule is just doing your job to the letter, by the book if you will!

I’m no expert in industrial relations mind.

https://m.independent.ie/business/irish/aer-lingus-claims-unofficial-pilot-action-led-to-cancellations-and-cost-it-2m-last-week/a1993318273.html

Full work to rule would be much harsher than not working on days off, it would be refusing to go into captain's discretion and things like that that would really slow down the operation

My understanding is that for some time there has been a lack of enthusiasm amongst the pilots to step outside their agreed working conditions. Demonstrates the state of IR in flight ops when they have been doing this without union direction.

I guess the answer is that a directed work to rule would be a lot clearer and more organised in terms of what tasks pilots will and will not perform. For example: entitlements to meal breaks which cannot practically be taken in flight may be taken on turnarounds which would cause delays all over the schedule. Like you say, passengers don't realise that pilots are often shoveling a "meal" into them on the ground in Amsterdam or Heathrow whilst simultaneously getting weather updates, programming the MCDU etc. If you take your legally mandated meal break and don't perform any other tasks it's going to delay the flight.

I'm sure there are many other examples which would have a similar effect.

Feels like industrial action will happen. Now it’s what will it look like.

I assume mol is looking on closely to strike with some planes if allowed

They've used FR before, plenty of pics on A-N,other👀 known aviation site of Ryanair 737’s at T2.

I’d imagine a lot of utilisation of Privilege Style over the summer.

Your question is difficult to understand - are you talking from a pilot or passenger perspective?

In Germany strike notice is 48 hours. Goes to show how weak laws protecting workers are in Ireland.

Its difficult to say for sure at this point but I would strongly suspect the pilots would only give minimum notice (i.e. the 7 days), so I wouldn't rely on there being 15 days' notice. If they're in the middle of a spat with the company why would they facilitate; especially if the company's ultimate aim is just to wriggle out of having to cough up for EU compensation for it's passengers. Hopefully for you if they do announce action which might affect your flight, it may initially only be work to rule which might not mean a cancellation at all, maybe just a delay. Hopefully you won't be affected!

it’s clear that Aer Lingus management are trying to provoke a strike. Part of a long play to move Aer Lingus operations to another jurisdiction and blame Irish working conditions