UĦM brokers accord between Air Malta and cabin crew union

A dispute between Air Malta and the Union of Cabin Crew that could have escalated into a full-blown strike was solved yesterday following the intervention of the Union Ħaddiema Magħqudin.

None of the two sides would give any details as they agreed to keep what they agreed upon under wraps.

The dispute was sparked off by a 16-hour delay in the Malta-Moscow flight last week after five cabin crew refused to make the flight insisting that the fact that the plane would depart 18 minutes behind schedule would mean that their statutory flying time would be exceeded by three minutes.

This in turn delayed two other Air Malta flights, to Manchester and to Vienna.

Air Malta said the incident cost them €109,000 and warned the crew could face dismissal if they were found to have jeopardised the company's goodwill. The airline also threatened to file a judicial protest in connection with the Manchester and Vienna flights delay.

This prompted the Union of Cabin Crew to threaten a full-blown strike. It insisted that action against the crew would be unacceptable because they were simply obeying a union directive that did not allow them to exceed 12 hours of flying time.

The EU imposes an 11-hour limitation but this can be extended by two hours. However, at the end of last year, the union directed members to only work an extra hour, bringing the maximum flight time to 12 hours.

Union president David Sargent said last week they had turned a blind eye on many occasions when it was just a question of exceeding the flight time limitation by five minutes. However, he continued, it had now reached a stage where there was too much pressure from Air Malta regarding working conditions. "They have made their point and we are making ours," Mr Sargent had said.

However, on Sunday the union opened a window for reconciliation. It said it preferred finding a solution rather than resorting to full-blown strike action. "Our aim is to talk things out and to find solutions through discussion. Action does nobody any good, especially workers," he said.