Money is not the main concern for Air Malta pilots in collective agreement talks with the company, a lawyer representing the pilots’ union said today.

Speaking at a press conference after presenting a reply to an Air Malta request in court for an injunction to stop industrial action, lawyer Edward Gatt said the pilots’ fundamental right to form part of a union was being attacked.

“The right to association cannot be attacked, it is a fundamental right enjoyed by all workers. It is dangerous to try and curtail this right, it is a threat,” Dr Gatt said. 

Dominic Azzopardi, president of the Airline Pilots Association (ALPA), said that pilots had always done their job professionally.

He said that the pilots had Air Malta’s best interests at heart and were not seeking to damage the airline. He pointed out, however, that pilot redundancies had not been ruled out.

Air Malta pilots, wearing their caps and jackets, in court this morning. They are not wearing jackets and caps in their cockpit in protest over the stalemate with Air Malta.

In a statement, the association said earlier that Air Malta's request for a ban on industrial action was shocking to all those who held workers' rights dear.

"ALPA will not be gagged by this threat to democracy and the constitutional and fundamental right of association," the union said. 

It said that contrary to the impression which Air Malta was trying to give, Maltese pilots were responsible employees and any industrial action would be mindful of the sustainability of the airline. 

The union regretted that Air Malta was trying to portray the pilots as being lazy and not wanting to work more than 50 hours a month. This was absolutely untrue and if they were currently not working enough, this was only the result of Air Malta's mistaken decision to reduce the airline fleet and thus, their hours of work, the association said. 

The pilots had always worked professionally and had an impeccable safety record, it added.

It was therefore concerned by the 'negative and destructive' attitude adopted by Air Malta, particularly after years of mistaken decisions, squandering, splashing out on employment in managerial grades, wrong strategies and stubbornness which had reduced the airline to its current state. 

The association accused the airline of not taking collective agreement talks seriously, despite the previous agreement having expired seven months ago.

The only thing Air Malta had offered was dismissals through redundancies, and working conditions which were undeserving to Maltese workers. The airline had not even proposed a date for the resumption of meetings.

ALPA insisted that its actions were in line with industrial law and it was the fundamental right of its members to be part of an association which took part in collective bargaining which could lead to industrial action. This was something laid down in domestic and international law and conventions.