Aer Lingus Crew 'Taken Off Payroll'

The union representing Aer Lingus cabin crew have announced some 44 workers are to go unpaid as they have been taken off the carrier's payroll over a roster dispute.

Aer Lingus warned last week that staff persistently refusing to co-operate with the new rosters would be sent home and removed from the payroll.

In a statement issued today, the union Impact said there are 32 meetings with individual cabin crew taking place today, a number that does not include 12 employees taken off duties and payroll last night.

According to the statement, each member of staff is reading a prepared statement in the meetings, setting out their position to the company.

The union said management is demanding they sign an undertaking to do anything management instruct them to do in the future and that staff are refusing to sign, leading to their removal from duties and payroll.

A total of at least 44 cabin crew members are expected to be off the payroll indefinitely from today as a result of the dispute.

A spokesman for the union added that four cabin crew workers based in Cork, and eight members based in Dublin, were told by the company last night that they were being taken off duties because they had taken meal breaks while working a series of ‘doubled’ duties after completing in excess of the required working hours.

"The workers involved now face investigation by the airline, and it is possible that they will be removed from payroll, following the company’s threat to do so in a letter to cabin crew on January 12th," the spokesman continued.

It is understood Impact is not planning to organise further industrial action or walk-outs in the event of cabin crew being taken off the payroll.

Aer Lingus cancelled a return service to Boston following what it said was the refusal of cabin crew represented by Impact to operate the flights under the new roster system.

(DW/GK)