Pilots’ union says Ryanair misrepresented its stance on pay talks

Irish pilots’ union Fórsa told members on Friday that Ryanair had misrepresented its position in pay talks in a recent memo.

The union and Ryanair have clashed over Fórsa’s bid to have pay talks jointly referred to the Workplace Relations Commission, which deals with industrial relations issues in cases where workers and management have exhausted local negotiations.

Katie Morgan, national secretary of Fórsa’s services and enterprise division, told pilots in a circular on Friday that the union had serious concerns about allegations in a recent memo from Ryanair people director Darrell Hughes to them.

She added that the union had written to Ryanair disputing its content. “We assert it is a misrepresentation of the negotiations,” Ms Morgan said. “We remain committed to negotiating improved pay and conditions for our members and do so in good faith.”

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Fórsa plans to hold meetings next week of members in its Irish Air Line Pilots’ Association branch in Ryanair to update them on the talks.

Ryanair and Fórsa are in talks over restoring a 20 per cent pay cut taken by pilots during the pandemic. The airline and the union have agreed a deal covering Irish cabin crew.

The company is offering Irish-based pilots a similar deal to those agreed in other European countries, including restoring 10 per cent of pay immediately and the remaining 10 per cent in April 2023, if profits return to pre-Covid levels.

He maintained that “unrealistic demands” made by Fórsa and the committee had slowed the pay talks, which have been under way for several months.

Mr Hughes’s memo to pilots, sent earlier this month, said Ryanair had no difficulty with third-party mediation, but argued that it could not be a substitute for meaningful talks with Fórsa officials and the airline’s pilot committee.

He maintained that “unrealistic demands” made by Fórsa and the committee had slowed the pay talks, which have been under way for several months. He warned that going to the WRC would only delay pay restoration further. His memo noted that some pilot unions in Europe had agreed deals in April.

On that basis, he calculated that an Irish-based Ryanair captain has lost €4,000 in extra pay from April to June.

Ryanair said it looked forward to continuing pay talks in good faith with Fórsa and the pilots’ committee. The company maintains that it has agreed pay deals with 85 per cent of its pilots across Europe, with Spanish and French unions the latest to sign up.