Ireland’s Aer Lingus settles pilot pay row

By AFP
July 23, 2024

Aer Lingus pilots have been on strike over pay - Copyright AFP/File Frederic J. BROWN

A long-running row over pay between Irish airline Aer Lingus and pilots that led to hundreds of flight cancellations was settled Tuesday after pilots accepted an 18-percent wage hike.

“This is the greatest pay award seen in 30 years for Aer Lingus pilots,” the head of the Irish Air Line Pilots’ Association (IALPA), Mark Tighe, told public broadcaster RTE.

IALPA had demanded a 24-percent hike to compensate for cost-of-living increases and cumulative inflation since a last pay rise in 2019.

The pilots launched work-to-rule industrial action on June 26 that ran for two weeks, and staged an eight-hour strike on June 29.

Aer Lingus axed 610 flights affecting around 84,000 passengers during the dispute.

The carrier said the industrial action removed the flexibility the airline needed to fly its summer schedule.

Ireland’s Labour Court, a body tasked with resolving industrial disputes, proposed a 17.75 percent pay increase and other measures including changes to pay scales and the termination of a debt owed by pilots to Aer Lingus.

“(The deal) is a very positive development for intending travellers and the tourism sector,” Clare Dunne, chief executive of the Irish Travel Agents Association (ITAA), told RTE.