ICTU: Lower airport charge plan could spark worker dispute

Dublin Airport is considering a drop in charges. Photo: PETER MUHLY/AFP/Getty Images

Fearghal O'Connor

Dublin airport could face "serious industrial relations difficulties" if lower landing charges proposed by the aviation regulator go through, the Irish Congress of Trade Unions has warned.

The country's main trade union grouping said in a submission to the Commission for Aviation Regulation (CAR) that analysis of pay growth at the airport underlying the proposal for a 15pc reduction in landing charges in the four years from 2020 was "deeply flawed".

Research obtained by CAR ahead of its draft determination on airport charges published in May had indicated that legacy pay of longer-serving staff at DAA should be brought into line with newer contracts.

That research also suggested that lower charges could be achieved by reducing staff numbers by 200, a proposal that was rejected by ICTU as "difficult" during a period of high passenger growth. It added that passengers could see a worsening in services with no guarantee of lower charges translating into lower fares.

The main beneficiary would be the airlines, it said, warning that any compulsory redundancies to achieve this target that it would have "the most serious industrial relations implications".