From the IAA website.
From the school of how to get the ATCO's back on side and not piss anyone off
Date: February 06 2008
Headline: Renewed Unofficial Disruptive Action by Air Traffic Controllers
Following intense negotiations under the auspices of the Labour Relations Commission over the last two weeks and despite significant progress the Irish Aviation Authority regrets to advise that there is a further incident of unofficial action by Air Traffic Controllers this time at Shannon Airport. As a result no air traffic control services will be available at Shannon Airport between 7pm and 9pm this evening. This will directly impact on 11 flights. We expect normal services to resume at 9pm. The Authority regrets any inconvenience caused to airlines and the travelling public arising from this unofficial action by controllers.
This is a renewal of the unofficial action that caused 32 flights to be delayed at Dublin Airport on the 25th January. This is the third time in little over two weeks that IMPACT has given an assurance that their members would return to normal working and it is also the third time that Air Traffic Controllers have reneged on this commitment. Safety is the Authority’s highest priority and we will ensure that aircraft and passenger safety is not jeopardised by any unofficial disruption by Air Traffic Controllers.
This unofficial action is being reintroduced notwithstanding an agreement reached between the Irish Aviation Authority and the Air Traffic Controllers Union, IMPACT, at the Labour Relations Commission, involving a process and time schedule to deal with the controllers’ grievances. This process and time schedule is due to continue until Friday, the 8th February. The controllers’ unofficial action is in contravention of the national agreement T-2016, our Continuity of Service Agreement and national industrial relations procedures.
Air Traffic Controllers have benefited from all four phases of T-2016 and in addition to the 10% paid under that agreement have also, through a Labour Court process, involving change over and above “normal ongoing change”, secured a Labour Court Recommendation of an additional 5% pay increase backdated to 1 January 2006 to cover all change up to the end of 2008. That means that Air Traffic Controllers are due to benefit by a premium of 50% over and above all other workers who are party to T-2016. Yet they are engaging in further unofficial action to secure even higher pay increases. This is totally unacceptable.
No staffing issues arose prior to the announcement of the Labour Court award, even during busy months of July/August and Christmas, where maximum staff would be on leave. The current unofficial disruption is orchestrated by controllers in order to ensure that the Authority is short of staff at key periods and for safety reasons the Authority has to restrict traffic or reduce services.
Air traffic controllers have committed under successive national agreements to continued adaptation and flexibility. The overtime arrangement that the controllers are refusing to operate is, and has been for many years, part of that flexibility and was not raised by their union as part of its claim during any stage of the Labour Court process. This only emerged as an issue after the Labour Court Recommendation.
The Authority operates a policy of “Crewing to Workload”. This simply means we allocate greater numbers of staff for busy periods and lesser staff numbers when traffic levels are low. The Authority will continue to maintain sufficient staff numbers to match the controller workloads. A class of 36 student air traffic controllers will commence in March with more starting in early 2009. The last group of controllers graduated in November 2007.
The Authority has spent nearly €200 million since 2000 in providing Ireland with one of the most modern Air Traffic Control Systems with numerous safety features giving our controllers one of the most advanced systems to work with and to handle increased traffic levels.
Ireland has, for the last 21 years, a system of Social Partnership which is the envy of many other economies. This social partnership and successive National Agreements has served the country, business and above all air traffic controllers extremely well.
We operate sophisticated and well oiled industrial relations procedures in the Irish Aviation Authority and have in place, one of the first of its kind, a Continuity of Service Agreement, specifically designed to prevent the type of wildcat action being engaged in by Air Traffic Controllers. This agreement has been in place since 1996 and is reviewed and rolled-over every three years. It conforms to the 1992 Labour Relations Commission - Code of Practice for Dispute Procedures in Essential Services.
The Authority appeals to the controllers to desist from unofficial action which has the potential to cause great inconvenience to airlines and the travelling public and to adhere to the process agreed at the Labour Relations Commission.
ENDS
For further information contact;
Name removed to spare blushes
Corporate Communications Manager
Irish Aviation Authority
Tel:
What a fantastic piece of propoganda. Frau Goebels excelling as usual.
Keep up the good work, I can hardly wait for your next press release
