Aer Lingus management and Siptu are to meet this morning amid concerns that industrial action at the airline could lead to further delays and disruption as the peak holiday season approaches.
Aer Lingus said yesterday it could give no guarantees on the possibility of further industrial action by ground staff and maintained such questions should be put to workers.
However, the Dublin Airport Authority, which is expecting more then 90,000 people a day to use the airport in the coming weeks, has expressed concern about the dispute.
Shortly before 6am last Saturday, some 100 Aer Lingus ground staff stopped work in a dispute which centred on staff being asked to work on check-in desks and at boarding gates.
The dispute lasted one hour, but as the day progressed Aer Lingus flights were running up to two hours behind schedule.
Aer Lingus spokesman Niall Bradley told The Irish Times yesterday that the company could only disseminate information on what had happened on Saturday. Further questions were a matter for the union involved, he said.
Asked if the company was making any alternative preparations for passengers as the busy period approaches, Mr Bradley repeated that this was a matter best put to Siptu.
On the subject of efforts to resolve the dispute with the workers, Mr Bradley said he understood it was about "multi-skilling", which was already in workers' contracts.
Efforts to contact the Siptu aviation branch representative yesterday were unsuccessful, but the union said on Saturday that the possibility of future action was dependent on the outcome of today's meeting.
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