Thousands back petition demanding State aid for Aer Lingus

Thousands of people are backing a petition launched by Aer Lingus workers who fear for their jobs, calling on the Government to aid the airline. People’s unwillingness to travel in the face of State Covid-19 restrictions has left Aer Lingus workers fearing the airline could effectively halt operations for the winter and lay many of them off. Pilots and other workers launched an online petition over the weekend, calling on the Government to support Aer Lingus financially if it is not willing to drop its advice against “non-essential” travel. “If it doesn’t this Government will go down in history as the one that presided over the wind-up of Aer Lingus,” the petition warns. “Since the emergence of Covid-19 we have been operating under the most stringent travel restrictions in Europe. At the same time we are the only major European carrier not to have received any State assistance. “The demise of Aer Lingus, and the consequent loss of thousands of jobs, would be nothing short of a national tragedy,” it says. More than 8,000 people have already signed the petition. Aer Lingus CE Sean Doyle, speaking to staff on Friday, said he could not rule out compulsory job losses. The airline is in talks with unions, including Siptu, the Irish Airline Pilots’ Association and Fórsa, about cutting 500 of its 4,500 jobs.<br/>