SIPTU president Jack O'Connor has warned that if cost cutting at Aer Lingus materialised it would almost inevitably torpedo anything that emerged from the pay talks.
He said that winning approval for a deal against this backdrop would make it very difficult for members to accept a deal in a ballot.
He said he plans to write to the airline’s CEO to seek clarification and warned the implications for the talks process are immense.
Meanwhile, reports that up to 1,300 redundancies could be sought at Aer Lingus have been dismissed as speculation.
Speaking on RTE’s This Week programme, IMPACT’s Bernard Harbour said the airline had said it would bring proposals to workers at the end of the month. But he said that, as of now, there were no proposals on the table.
However, Mr Harbour admitted that workers were bracing themselves for ‘some pretty strong proposals’ but urged his members not to believe ‘everything you read in the papers’.
ICTU General Secretary David Begg confirmed that the Aer Lingus board has made no decision on the extent of cost cutting measures.
Arriving for pay talks at Government Buildings, he said it is clear that Aer Lingus is an important employer and the issues of cost cutting and out-sourcing would be raised at today’s talks.
