Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1240944
3 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 26 APRIL 2020 NEWS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 But in a letter to the govern- ment, ALPA is now giving notice of legal action against the na- tional airline, accusing Air Mal- ta's directors of failing to obtain "financial assistance in order to minimise the company's financial hardship [and] considering alter- native measures [for a] less re- strictive effect on the workforce." The pilots originally refused to meet Air Malta management, claiming the coronavirus pan- demic prevented them from meeting to discuss the €1,200 monthly wage offer. Now they want an investigation into the conduct of the affairs and dealings of the board of directors, they stated in their legal letter. The ALPA letter comes in the wake of revelations published in MaltaToday that pilots are guar- anteed their take-home pay with a government job, even in the case of a downsizing of the air- line. Despite playing hardball with the airline, pilots were stunned by Air Malta's decision to proceed with redundancies. Pilots have been accused by Air Malta management of deliberate- ly departing late or arriving late on flights, so as to force a rest pe- riod that passes on the next flight to other pilots. One government source claims the "racket" allows pilots to claim maximum rest periods by spread- ing the workload across the en- tire pilot roster. "They do not fly as much as their European coun- terparts and the union is not even able to make its members respect flying hours," the source said. In talks between ALPA and Air Malta, pilots have also demand- ed a permanent health insurance scheme and an early retirement scheme for pilots aged over 50. Pilots already have an early re- tirement scheme for those over 55 with 25 years' service, which pays them two-thirds of their ba- sic salary, plus 0.1% of basic salary per month until reaching retire- ment age. At an average €80,000 salary, that would guarantee them a sal- ary of €53,000 until retirement. According to the collective agreement, newly appointed jun- ior first officers are paid €24,000 while first officers start at €34,000 and captains' take-home pay starts at €66,000 and can reach €109,000. These exclude the payments they receive for hours spent flying, as well as denied days of duty: this is a payment to the entire crew staff when Air Malta denies days off, paid at the rate of their basic salary multiplied by 0.004: which could be as much as €200 for each day denied. Pilots demands in legal letter In their letter to the govern- ment, ALPA now is demanding evidence of Air Malta's claims that the €1,200 monthly salary it offered to pilots could safeguard the jobs of all employees – as originally intended by the airline when the pilots union refused to meet with management. While Air Malta had publicly declared that ALPA was refusing to entertain its offer because its committee and members could not meet due to the coronavirus, the union now is demanding a meeting to "conduct meaningful and effective consultation" with company directors. The pilots are also requesting that Air Malta declares whether it will apply for any COVID-19 wage supplements from Malta Enterprise, to subsidise wages; whether it will apply any state aid under recently relaxed rules from the European Commission; and also details of Air Malta's busi- ness plan for its future prospects post-COVID. Extended early retirement would cost Air Malta millions PILOTS were given a second guarantee from former tourism minister Konrad Mizzi, for a job at the same take-home pay they are earning now should Air Mal- ta be downsized. The document, signed on 26 January, 2018, was a side letter to the collective agreement signed by Mizzi on behalf of the gov- ernment and five representatives of the Airline Pilots' Association Malta (ALPA). There are no Air Malta signatories, The Times re- vealed yesterday. MaltaToday had already re- vealed a side letter signed by Miz- zi's predecessor, Edward Zammit Lewis, that guarantees a take- home pay for pilots in the case of Air Malta 'rightsizing' in con- junction with an early retirement scheme. The Mizzi side letter gave pi- lots a guarantee of a job in Malta, valid until the collective agree- ment – signed moments earlier – expires in 2023 and another is signed. The side letter, which was never made public, states: "The parties agree that through this agree- ment the government is giving all pilots a guarantee of a job in Malta and a take-home pay, ac- cording to the conditions of the collective agreement signed ear- lier today. This guarantee will continue to stand until a new collective agreement between Air Malta and ALPA is signed and which must be concluded within a reasonable time from its expi- ry." The pilots' union is now de- manding that the government re- spects this agreement, which was also mentioned in a judicial pro- test ALPA filed earlier this week against the airline and the econo- my minister calling for meaning- ful consultation. Already in 2016, Air Malta pilots were promised a signed guarantee by the Labour govern- ment that they would be kept on the state payroll with their same take-home pay, in the absence of a voluntary retirement scheme to 'right-size' the airline. The side-letter of 18 August 2016 was an agreement forced by the threat of a strike by Mal- ta's pilots, in which then tourism minister Edward Zammit Lewis had to placate pilots in a bid to increase their flying hours. The agreement states that the government "is giving all Air Malta pilots in Malta a guarantee of work, and will actively consid- er a voluntary early retirement scheme to 'right-size' [the air- line] that would be acceptable to all parties, including ALPA… the government is guaranteeing pilots that they will continue re- ceiving a 'take home pay' of their choice according to either years 2014, 2015 or 2016." The 2016 side-letter was then confirmed again in another side-letter, also attached to the collective agreement that fol- lowed, in which Zammit Lew- is confirmed the "guarantee of work", with ALPA finally an- nouncing it was renouncing on its industrial dispute. An airline source has insisted the wording of the agreement, which forms part of the collec- tive agreement, is a guarantee that pilots terminated from Air Malta would still be granted a job on the state payroll at their same take-home pay. Air Malta took the unprece- dented step to make 108 pilots from its staff of 134 redundant, after ALPA refused to take a radi- cal pay cut of €1,200 a month due to the coronavirus grounding all flights. The collective agreement states that pilots' licences will be re- newed by the company prior to termination of employment, and that "in cases of redundan- cies… or a change in the state of affairs of the company, discus- sions should be held between the company and the union to reach an agreement on the amount of compensation that the affected employees should receive. This should be additional to any other benefits the employee might be entitled to." According to the collective agreement, newly appointed jun- ior first officers are paid €24,000 while first officers start at €34,000 and captains' take-home pay starts at €66,000 and can reach €109,000. These exclude perfor- mance-based payments for hours spent flying, layover allowances, and denied days of duty. Even Mizzi gave pilots salary guarantee Former tourism minister Konrad Mizzi (fifth from right) with Air Malta officials to his left, ALPA members to his right, and next to him, President emeritus George Abela, father of the current prime minister, who mediated talks for the 2018 collective agreement