Unions at Aer Lingus have just entered a meeting with management following the final result of staff ballots on company’s plans to cut 97 million euro from the airline’s budget. With over a thousand jobs on the line all but one major staff group have voted to accept the company’s drastic re-structuring deal.   

Staff looked on with concern, as board members today held an emergency meeting to discuss their next move, while a trading statement released this morning revealed that Aer Lingus had lost €81-million euro last year – despite a jump in passenger numbers.

With the final staff ballot from UNITE coming in overnight in favour of the re-structuring plan, unions representing pilots, middle management, maintenance Staff, and some ground staff and cabin crew – have now all lined up behind the scheme, which is drastic, but many claim necessary.

However the IMPACT trade union – which represents the bulk of the cabin crew had earlier voted against.

UNITE’S already commented that it hopes that won’t spell bad news for all, as Aer Lingus Management had warned that even tougher cuts lay in store unless all staff backed the plan.

Management have called a news conference in a city hotel for later this afternoon, when the situation should become clearer.