PPRuNe Forums - View Single Post - Irish Air Traffic Controllers to be suspended
Old 21st Jan 2010, 10:58
  #68 (permalink)  
nosefirsteverytime

PPRuNe Engineering Dept Apprentice
 
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Angry

Ok hum, read your side of the story (not calling it the "facts, then again I don't call IAA side the "facts" either)

Why aren't you hammering on about this?

We are very concerned that this project may lead to in air or on ground collisions. As aircraft will be transiting from one side of the aerodrome to the other across another active runway on the ground in the air aircraft will be turning towards another active flight path either on approach or departure; then the big issue is what happens during a missed approach? We want to talk about the safety and impact of this and the other changes.
Instead of letting IMPACT waffle about another dispute.

Disruption to flights today is happening SOLELY because management at the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) has suspended air traffic controllers from duty in Dublin and Shannon airports, without pay.

The disruption can be avoided if management withdraws the suspensions.

Air traffic controllers are NOT taking industrial action today in pursuit of a pay claim, or over new technologies. They are taking action because management has suspended staff.

There was no need for management to do this because the core differences between management and staff are already being dealt with by the Labour Relations Commission and the Labour Court. [The pay issue goes before the Labour Court next Tuesday and both sides agreed last Thursday that the ‘new technologies’ issue should also be referred to the Labour Court].

Pending the Labour Court process, IMPACT told the company that air traffic controllers would respond to any suspensions with industrial action – but the company went ahead anyway, even though it is less than a week until the Labour Court hearing.

The company is being dishonest when it says that the air traffic controllers should be cooperating with new work practices in advance of a Labour Court hearing. They say that the new work practices are ‘normal ongoing change’, when that is the precise issue that the Labour Court has been asked to rule on – whether they are ‘normal ongoing change’ or not. The ‘status quo’ is the existing work practices – not the new ones.

The IAA has said it will further escalate the problem by making further suspensions today and tomorrow.

Members of the union working at air traffic control voted, by a majority of 99%, not to cooperate with the new work practices until agreement could be reached. Pending agreement, air traffic controllers are observing an instruction of non-cooperation by their trade union, IMPACT.
If safety had been at the forefront of this dispute, (and I'm on about the union getting their man on the telly hammering on about "safety safety safety") then the public reaction (me included) would be a lot more on your side.

It wasn't. Joe Public saw the ATCOs shaft them because 15 people threw their toys out of the pram and got suspended.

If you want Joe Public back on side, then publicise the issues against the use of the new systems.

I want to hear your people on about "COOPANS, pointmerge, and dual runway ops" in the news. That is your only hope of getting any support from the public when the MOT slaps a "No Strike" clause in your contract by law.
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