Air Malta is “willing to sign” the agreement that was proposed by and sent to it by the Airline Pilots Association (ALPA) on 29 June 2019, The Malta Independent has been told.
Asked by this newsroom whether any further discussions had taken place since the court’s decision to stop ALPA’s industrial action, a spokesperson for Air Malta said that insofar as Air Malta is concerned, “an agreed position was reached on all matters which were being discussed with ALPA”.
“No further discussion or negotiation is required, nor has any such further discussion or negotiation been requested by Air Malta. In fact, Air Malta accepted, and is willing to sign, the proposed agreement sent to it by ALPA on the 29 June 2019”, the spokesperson said.
There have been tensions between the national airline and ALPA for the best part of a month, especially after ALPA-led industrial action saw all flight on 1 July be delayed by 30 minutes. The company later filed an injunction, blocking the action, which was later upheld.
Asked about matters which emerged during the court proceedings on the injunction against ALPA, namely on the involvement of Air Malta’s Chief of Flight Operations Emvin Debono in talks, the spokesperson said that since the company is bound to take the subject matter of the injunction proceedings before the Courts, it prefers not to comment on such matters.
The spokesperson noted that following the court’s decision, ALPA has seemingly resorted to communicating through the press rather than directly with the company, before noting that the company is open to discussions with ALPA as long as these are within the parameters prescribed by law and the collective agreement.
The union had said that it had resorted to industrial action in response to the airline management’s “numerous attempts to deploy crew illegally against the stipulated procedures, as well as in response to the company’s persistent failure to address concerns relating to the safety and wellbeing of its members.”
With regards to this assertion, the airline’s spokesperson told this newsroom that refuses any claim that it seeks to deploy crew illegally.
“For clarity and avoidance of any doubt, the Company refutes any claim that it seeks to deploy crew illegally. Safety of crew and customers has always been, and remains, the airline’s top priority”, the spokesperson said.
ALPA last July accused Air Malta of “distorting indisputable facts” as well as “painting a false and unclear picture” of the current state of affairs. It had been perceived that the reason behind ALPA’s industrial action was because they were demanding that the government – as Air Malta’s main shareholder – guarantee an early retirement scheme which would amount to around €700,000 if Air Malta folded.
Asked whether this early retirement scheme was included in the proposals that ALPA had sent Air Malta on 29 June and which the airline was ready to sign, the spokesperson said that ALPA were not demanding this guarantee from the airline but were demanding it from the government.
On the government’s part, Tourism Minister Konrad Mizzi has insisted that the government would not accept such “ridiculous” guarantees.