IMPACT has outlined a series of commitments from Aer Lingus, which the union has said would be required if the Government agrees to sell its stake in the company to IAG, following a formal bid. The Government has rejected a proposed bid by IAG, and has invited the airline group to improve its offer.

IMPACT national secretary Matt Staunton wrote to the Aer Lingus CEO Stephen Kavanagh this week in response to a letter from the CEO to all staff, which Matt described as a “selective and upbeat” account of a meeting that took place between unions and management of both airlines last Friday (6^th March).

In the letter, Matt outlined the commitments the union would seek in the event the state share was sold to IAG, but said these were communicated to the airline “without prejudice to the fact that it remains IMPACT’s view that we don’t believe that the proposed takeover is a good idea for jobs, for Aer Lingus workers or for Ireland’s connectivity and economic development.”

Matt said the commitments he described would need to be processed into a suite of collective agreements, with all terms incorporated into contracts of employment.

The full text of Matt’s letter was issued to IMPACT members in Aer Lingus in a special bulletin.

Labour briefing

A delegation from IMPACT met with a group of Labour deputies on Wednesday (11^th March) in order to give a briefing on the union’s position on the proposed takeover by IAG.

IMPACT re-stated its opposition to the proposed takeover, and supplied a copy of Matt Staunton’s letter outlining the commitments the union would seek in the event of a sale of the state’s share in the airline.

The group of Labour deputies had tabled a motion at their party conference in Killarney two weeks ago, which was overwhelmingly passed and called on the Government to reject a bid by the IAG for shares in Aer Lingus if concerns about the sale are not addressed.

Following the meeting with IMPACT, a number of Labour TDs told the Irish Independent newspaper that they thought IMPACT was “warming” to a possible takeover. This claim was firmly rejected by IMPACT, and said the reported comments were a misinterpretation of what was said at the meeting.