Ryanair protective notice designed to intimidate striking pilots
Labour Employment Affairs spokesperson Ged Nash said the actions by Ryanair to issue protective notice to crews in Dublin is clearly aimed at striking pilots, and called on the company to engage in good faith with their trade union.
Senator Nash said:
“The move by Ryanair to put more than 100 pilots and 200 cabin crew on protective notice is a sinister move that is clearly aimed at intimidating pilots who are currently striking to secure better workplace conditions.
“It also seems to me to be a warning shot fired in the direction of cabin crew.
“The action is reprehensible and deliberately provocative, and hard to understand when the Irish economy is growing, and activity at Dublin airport increasing.
“This is an extraordinary way for a company that claims it wants to resolve industrial relations in its organisation to behave.
“Instead of engaging constructively with workers the airline has decided to drag its feet and issue threats.
“The airline has not moved on any of the substantive issues after three days of strikes and the resolve of the pilots is strong. Ryanair’s absolute intransigence has now directly resulted in the announcement by pilots of a fourth day of action on the 3rd August.
“These kinds of threats are a classic tactic of employers who refuse to engage in good faith with their workers.
“Management would make better use of their time if they sought to resolve the issues pilots have raised in a respectful and meaningful way.
“This isn’t going to go away, as crews in Belgium, Italy, Portugal and Spain are holding 24 hour strikes so the company should show some courage and engage positively and in good faith with the staff who are central to the success of the company.”