O’Leary brings in ace mediator to solve Ryanair’s mission impossible
RYANAIR has always prided itself on getting you to your destination on time. Now it can’t even guarantee it will get you there.
There is no doubt Europe’s largest budget airline’s big selling points have begun to fly out of the window due to a monumental showdown.
Its exceptionally low fares may have meant that many people were still prepared to take a punt on a last minute deal until quite recently. But bookings are bound to be bombing, as the industrial contagion that started among a minority of pilots in Ireland spreads across Europe.
It hadn’t been too bad for passengers on the home front during the strikes. Only about 16 or so flights were cancelled a day, a small fraction of the total number. And only UK flights have been hit – so far. But grabbing a bargain with the budget carrier is getting more risky.
Almost every day this week, pilots in yet another country joined what is beginning to look like a coordinated campaign of industrial action. First the Germans and the Dutch, followed by the Belgians and Swedes.
The unions deny there is any coordination afoot. But it seems an incredible coincidence that three unions, including Fórsa in Ireland, have already planned a stoppage on August 10. Ryanair believes that pilots in two more countries will join in.
But what might well be the most worrying factor from the airline’s perspective is the fact pilots in its biggest market took the first step towards a possible strike.
The British Air Line Pilots Association (Balpa) triggered a ‘failure to agree’ mechanism that means talks on pay and the airline’s use of contracts reached an impasse. This means it could ballot.
The Irish operation is minuscule in terms of the UK business, which makes up a quarter of Ryanair’s pilots and planes and is home to its biggest base at Stansted.
This sorry situation started when Ryanair decided to recognise unions back in December. But some started getting fed up around June. Years of pent up frustration led to so many demands you would need to set up an Excel spreadsheet to read them.
Michael O’Leary resorted to threats of job cuts and shifting planes to Polish bases. But this played into the unions’ hands in getting his staff onside and increasing their ratings in the public sympathy stakes.
Sure enough, there were more strike threats, but O’Leary made a good decision yesterday before the conflict got even more costly. It may have had something to do with the possibility of Balpa mobilising.
He desperately needed a gesture of goodwill and asked industrial relations top gun Kieran Mulvey to sort out the mission impossible.
“If I can be of assistance, I will,” Mr Mulvey told the Irish Independent .“But there has to be constructive engagement to resolve the issues involved.”
If Mr Mulvey – who has extensive experience sorting out aviation disputes and even defused the Garth Brooks concerts row – can turn down the temperature in Ireland, it will probably take the heat out of the conflict abroad.
Only UK flights have been hit – so far. But grabbing a bargain is getting more risky