Aer Lingus guaranteed pilots union recognition with regional operator

Aer Lingus was drawn into the dispute between Emerald Airlines and pilots on Friday after it emerged the carrier had pledged its future regional franchisee would recognise the pilots’ trade union.

Irish Airline Pilots’ Association (Ialpa) members at Emerald, which provides the Aer Lingus Regional service under a contract, have been on a work-to-rule since last month over the airline’s refusal to recognise the union or begin talks on pay and conditions.

It emerged on Friday that Aer Lingus told Ialpa in 2020 that it would it require whichever airline got the contract to provide its regional services to recognise and deal meaningfully with the trade union.

[ Aer Lingus Regional pilots plan work-to-rule over pay, conditions and union recognition issues ]

A letter from Brian Bowden, Aer Lingus chief people officer, to Evan Cullen, then Ialpa president, states that “in respect to franchise arrangements effective from 1 Jan 2023, Aer Lingus agrees that recognition of and engagement with the Irish Airline Pilots’ Association (Ialpa) by the supplier will be a condition of entering into agreement with Aer Lingus”.

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The letter, dated June 16th, 2020, and circulated to pilots on Friday, adds that Aer Lingus will stipulate that the “supplier” will “engage meaningfully with Ialpa and its officers”, as the representatives of pilots hired by the airline to fly under the franchise agreement for Aer Lingus’s benefit.

Aer Lingus confirmed that it told all potential candidates for the regional franchise “of the need for recognition of and meaningful engagement with Ialpa” when it sought bids for the contract in 2020. It would not comment any further.

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It is understood the union has raised the issue with Aer Lingus since it first sought talks with Emerald management earlier this year. Emerald did not comment.

Aer Lingus Regional services link British, French and Channel Island airports with Ireland. Emerald emerged as the preferred bidder to succeed Stobart Air as the operator late in 2020, finalising a deal in 2021.

That contract was scheduled to start on January 1st this year but, as Stobart had ceased trading, Emerald and Aer Lingus said that they would work on restarting some regional routes before then. The new service began with Dublin-Donegal flights in March last year.

Aer Lingus made the commitment to Ialpa in 2020 after the union agreed that Stobart could base regional services at Belfast. Previous deals with the pilots’ union stipulated that Aer Lingus Regional services could only be based from airports within the Republic.

[ Aer Lingus Regional pilots vote to strike ]

Stobart – which was in financial trouble by mid-2020, partly a result of severe Government-imposed Covid restrictions – had sought the concession on Belfast as it believed this offered a potential route to survival.

Ialpa agreed, but in return Aer Lingus pledged to make recognition of the union a condition of the next regional franchise deal. It sought bids for this in 2020, as Stobart’s contract was to set to end on December 31st, 2022.

Aer Lingus Regional is now one of the biggest airlines at Belfast City Airport, which has in turn become a key base for the service and Emerald.

The pilots’ union wrote to Emerald management in April seeking to begin talks on pay and conditions. While the two sides communicated, the company did not agree to meet or to negotiate.

Ialpa members voted overwhelmingly for industrial action in a subsequent ballot. On June 24th, pilots began a work-to-rule, refusing to work overtime or out-of-duty hours. The union said it reserved the right to step up this action.

Emerald maintains that it has made good progress on pilots’ pay and conditions in talks with its internal employee representative body. The airline also argues that Ialpa only represents a minority of its pilots.