Aer Lingus has canceled more flights for next week as the Irish Air Line Pilots' Association (IALPA) continues its work-to-rule industrial action.
Aer Lingus said in a statement today, July 10, that "as a consequence of the ongoing IALPA industrial action," it is canceling 25 flights for Monday, July 15 and Tuesday, July 16.
The airline said it "expects to announce further cancellations in the morning."
Aer Lingus said the flights being canceled on July 15 and July 16 "will be implemented later this afternoon [Wednesday], and details of the impacted flights will be communicated to impacted customers.
"Details of the services impacted will also be set out on the ‘Travel Advisory’ page of AerLingus.com later this afternoon."
At the time of publication, Aer Lingus had not yet said which flights were being canceled.
Customers impacted by the latest round of cancelations will be given the option to change their flights for free. They will also be able to claim a refund or voucher. These options will be communicated directly to impacted customers as well as travel agents, while the Aer Lingus ‘Travel Advisory’ page will also have up-to-the-minute information on all the options.
Aer Lingus added that it "fully understands the anxiety being experienced by customers given the uncertainty caused by IALPA’s industrial action and is giving impacted customers as many options as possible.”
IALPA is seeking a pay rise of nearly 24% to take account of inflation since their last wage increase in 2019. Aer Lingus, however, had said it cannot go beyond the 12.5% increase agreed upon with cabin and ground crews without greater productivity from pilots.
On June 26, IALPA commenced work-to-rule industrial action, and staged an eight-hour pilot's strike on June 29, in response to the ongoing pay dispute.
The industrial action had prompted Aer Lingus to cancel more than 500 flights prior to today's announcement that an additional 25 flights are being canceled for next week, with more expected.
On Monday, Aer Lingus said it will accept the Irish Labour Court's final recommendation, which, according to RTÉ News, is to increase pilots' pay by 17.75%.
The increase covers a four-year period from January 1, 2023, to the end of December 2026.
The court recommended that agreed 2022 pay scales be terminated on the date of acceptance of the recommendation and that pilots should revert to a single scale from that date.
It also said that the elimination of elements of a 'debt' owed by pilots should stand, notwithstanding the termination of the 2022 scales.
The Labour Court also recommended that an overnight allowance be increased by 10% with effect from the date of acceptance of the recommendation and a further 5% with effect from October 1, 2025.
While Aer Lingus encouraged pilots to accept the Labour Court's recommendation on Monday, IALPA is still reviewing the proposal.
Captain Mark Tighe, President of IALPA, told reporters on Wednesday that executives have written to the Labour Court seeking some clarification on recommendations.
"We hope to have a response soon, and the meeting of the executive will occur again, and they will make a formal decision then," he said, adding that "their decision to accept it or not will depend on the reply from the Labour Court."
Tighe said once the executive decides whether or not to support the Court's recommendations, "we'll have a series of information meetings for our members so they can ask their questions, then we will conduct our ballot."
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