Airline under fire for ditching staff during coronavirus crisis

The Unite union today accused Stobart Air, which operates Aer Lingus’ regional service, of cynically ditching its workforce at Southend Airport, during the coronavirus crisis.

The move has no bearing on staff employed directly by Southend Airport, whose roles are being protected. 

The union claims more than 30 Unite members employed as cabin crew will be laid off without pay for an initial four week period from tomorrow.

The flights are to European and regional destinations including Antwerp, Manchester, Edinburgh and Newquay.

Unite sought to follow the procedure, which has become the norm for the aviation industry, that the workers were furloughed under the government’s job retention scheme and therefore would receive 80 per cent of their pay.

But the union claims Stobart Air has refused to implement the furlough option citing “cashflow issues” and has also declined to seek further financial assistance from the government.

Unite is concerned that Stobart Air is forcing workers onto unpaid leave in the hope that they will find permanent alternative work so that they are not replaced and redundancy costs are minimised.

Unite regional officer Jo Jaques said: “Stobart Air has taken the cynical decision to ditch its workforce without pay.

“It is well known that the aviation sector is facing an unprecedented crisis due to the coronavirus. However, while most of the sector is doing the right thing in using the government’s scheme and standing by their staff, this is not the case for Stobart Air.

“Stobart Air needs to immediately reverse this decision and immediately furlough our members who otherwise will be left literally penniless with no way of feeding their families and paying their mortgages or rent.

“Stobart Air’s actions reflect very poorly on Aer Lingus a famous name in the aviation sector, who it would be hoped will look very dimly on the way one its key contractors has decided to treat its workforce.”

A spokeswoman for Stobart Air said: “The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic has seen the demand for airline services decrease at unprecedented levels globally. As a result, Stobart Air is currently operating a reduced schedule and has temporarily suspended all international flight operations which took effect from Saturday, March 28 until further notice.

“We have been engaging with our staff, and staff representatives throughout this time, as we work to implement difficult measures to reduce the cost base in protecting the future of our airline.

“Given the decision to suspend international and domestic services from Southend Airport, temporary lay-offs will be introduced."

The spokeswoman added: “16 per cent of Stobart Air staff will be retained to operate our domestic intra Ireland services and to allow us to work toward the recommencement of services as soon as it is advised and as demand returns when government travel restrictions are lifted.

“These measures are being implemented to protect the business against the current commercial reality and position us for the future."

“We are very mindful of the impact these measures have on our team, who have shown immense professionalism and forbearance at this time.

“Stobart Air’s operations has proven to be popular with millions of passengers over the years. Central to this has been our team of pilots, cabin crew, ground and executive staff. We remain committed to the resumption of services once the Covid-19 pandemic has ended.”

Note:

This story was initally published with the headline 'Southend Airport under fire for ditching staff during coronavirus crisis'. This was incorrect. 

London Southend Airport is an entirely different company from Stobart Air and no staff employed by the airport have lost their jobs. The airport is working to protect all roles.