Two more strikes planned as Aer Lingus talks collapse

Cabin crew at Aer Lingus are to go on strike for another two days later this month in an intensification of the dispute over rosters at the airline.

The trade union Impact, which represents cabin crew, said that talks with the company aimed at resolving the dispute had broken down, and it was serving management with notice of two further one-day strikes - on Monday, June 16th and Wednesday, June 18th.

The union said management in Aer Lingus had refused to negotiate in good faith and instead had issued a take-it-or-leave -it proposal which it knew was unacceptable.

The union said the Aer Lingus proposal would have resulted in hundreds of job losses.

A strike by cabin crew at Aer Lingus on Friday of last week disrupted the travel plans of nearly 30,000 people. The work stoppage cost the airline up to €10 million.

Cabin crew are seeking for the airline to introduce a fixed roster of five days on duty, followed by three days off, similar to the arrangement in place for pilots at the airline.

Impact official Michael Landers said the union had been willing to continue talks over the weekend, but claimed that management had "walked away".

Mr Landers claimed management’s only proposals in three days of talks would require staff who currently fly short and long haul flights to be rostered solely for one or the other.

“By tabling a clearly-unacceptable take-it-or-leave-it proposal, which would inevitably lead to hundreds of Irish jobs being exported to the USA, management has demonstrated that it never intended to negotiate in good faith - and that it cares little about unemployment or the Irish economy,” he said.

“Cabin crew are up against a management team that seems determined on conflict rather than trying to find practical and acceptable solutions. Therefore, we have had to conclude that, regrettably, only further industrial action can bring about a constructive approach from management.”

In a statement, Aer Lingus said Impact’s “disregard for customers and Ireland’s reputation in latest strike threat is indefensible”.

A spokesman said that despite being offered what they sought in last week’s strike, the union has opted to threaten further days of customer disruption,