Aer Lingus says pay offer to pilots includes deduction to cover cost of leave deal agreed in 2019

Aer Lingus says a pay offer rejected by pilots took account of extra summer leave and other entitlements agreed by their union in 2019. The carrier and the Irish Airline Pilots’ Association (Ialpa) — part of trade union Fórsa — are due at the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) in mid-February after cockpit crew rejected an 8.5% wage increase offered through the company’s pay tribunal. Aer Lingus maintains that the offer took into account extra summer leave and other entitlements that Ialpa negotiated in 2019, when it agreed that pilots would “compensate” it for those concessions in the next deal negotiated through the pay tribunal system. “As such, the funding of that 2019 agreement was to be addressed in the current tribunal recommendations with the agreement of pilots,” the airline added. The company noted that the tribunal, chaired by senior counsel Gerard Durcan, recommended that pilots get a 12.25% pay increase, which is what Aer Lingus agreed with cabin crew. The tribunal then deducted 3.75% to fund the cost of the 2019 agreement “as agreed by pilots”, noted Aer Lingus. Story has more details.<br/>