By Jaymie Holland-
The multi-national flight company Ryanair has planned to force pilots to change their leave dates following a recent spur of flight cancellations due to a shortage of pilots.
The global giant admitted it “messed up” their scheduling and planning around pilot leave dates and allowances, making more pilots be taking holiday at one time than what there should be. The company is now facing a huge backlash after announcing that it will cancel between 40-50 flights every single day for well over a month. The Dublin based career had over allocated several holiday to pilots , and have been either cancelling flights, or placing passengers on alternative flights. Under EU law passengers given less than 14 days notification of a cancellation can claim up to £250 euros, depending on the suitability of the alternative flights, and the underlying reasons behind the cancellations.
Cancellations caused due to internal failings or shortcomings would be viewed unfavourably compared to those caused by extraneous factors, like the weather.
At the company’s annual meeting held in Dublin, boss Michael O’Leary determines that the pilots with planned leave will have their holiday dates pushed back in an effort to rebalance the flight schedule and lessen the cancellations.
In order to make this more palatable, Ryanair have offered some pilots a one-time bonus of £12,000 (or 12,000 euros) an incentive some pilots have refused. Instead, these pilots have insisted on a new contract now the desire for a more adequately attuned company has reared it’s ugly head.
The company now face concerns regarding their ethical values, as O’Leary made clear that Ryanair will be pushing holiday back a week regardless of whether or not an agreement amongst the pilots is reached. Pilots with a four week holiday period due to be taken within the next quarter will now have to take three of the weeks plan and have the other week suspended until the new year.
After facing huge criticism from the media and the public, coinciding with the cry from Ryanair pilots for a major management change, it is uncertain whether or not the airline company is due to disappoint yet more passengers with cancellations in the next few months.