The refusal came following a 90-minute meeting in which union officials explained the proposals put forward by the government.

The GWU has therefore joined the cabin crew union, the pilots union and the engineers’ union in turning down the government memorandum.

The four unions were yesterday reported to be involved in talks to come up with counter-proposals which they have to submit by tomorrow’s deadline. Asked to comment, a government source said that, until last night, no official communication had been received by the government on its proposals.

The meeting at the GWU headquarters was held two days prior to the deadline imposed by government for the union’s counter proposals. An extraordinary shareholders’ meeting is planned for tomorrow afternoon.

Government and management have committed themselves to making no redundancies. Among the cost-cutting measures the airline is proposing on the administrative side, are a reduction in directors’ remuneration, the removal of the duty-free allowance and a reduction in allowances for senior management.

It is estimated that these economies will save the airline around Lm3.75 million each year over the next three years.