Tourism Minister Edward Zammit Lewis said yesterday industrial action by Air Malta pilots would be “disproportionate” and could cause “irreparable damage” to the tourism industry.
Using harsh words, Dr Zammit Lewis insisted the Airline Pilots Association was holding Air Malta and the tourism industry to “ransom” by threatening industrial action at the peak of summer.
“Alpa’s decision is disproportionate and dangerous… Industrial action at this time will inflict irreparable damage to the hundreds of businesses that operate in the tourism industry and to the airline’s financial position,” he said.
He noted the threat of harsher industrial action came during the most sensitive part of the government’s negotiations with Alitalia, which is being roped in as a strategic partner.
The talks on the sale of 49 per cent of government’s shareholding in Air Malta to the Italian carrier are ongoing after a memorandum of understanding was signed last April.
Pilots have been obeying a dress-down directive since last Sunday in protest over delays to the new collective agreement.
They are turning up for work without their caps and jackets but Alpa has not excluded upping the ante in the coming weeks if no progress was registered on the collective agreement, which expired six months ago.
The union is believed to have made financial demands the airline is not prepared to accept. Neither the union nor the airline have divulged what the impasse is.
Dr Zammit Lewis was also coy when asked to quantify the demands made by the pilots.
“Although both the government and Air Malta management have quantified Alpa’s request, it is not fit to divulge such data so as not to prejudice negotiations,” he said.
He urged the pilots’ union to return to the negotiating table and called for “common sense” to prevail. However, Dr Zammit Lewis insisted the government was ready to take the necessary decisions to save Air Malta.
“Unlike previous administrations, this government will not shy away from the Air Malta issue and will take the necessary action and decisions to save the airline and ensure its long-term viability,” he said.
In 2010 the government had to step in with a loan of €52 million in order to prevent the airline from going bust.
The decision was followed by a five-year restructuring programme imposed by the EU, which allowed a one-time injection of State aid worth hundreds of millions of euros on condition the airline returned to profitability by this year.
The target was narrowly missed and the government considers the part-sale of the airline to a strategic partner as the next step to find a long-term solution.