Caribbean Airlines Pilots Association Warns of Disruptions

TTALPA Accuses CAL Management of Hijacking Negotiations

The Trinidad and Tobago Airline Pilots Association (TTALPA) has warned of possible disruptions to the service of the state-owned Caribbean Airlines (CAL) after it accused the airline’s management of seeking to hijack the negotiations over salary increases for pilots.

According to TTALPA Industrial Relations Officer Timothy Bailey, the board of Caribbean Airlines has hijacked the negotiations. Last Friday, the negotiation teams between Caribbean Airlines and TTALPA were supposed to sign off on a collective agreement of agreed items coming out of Mr. Imbert’s (Finance Minister) announcement on the 30th of October.

Disagreement Over Collective Agreement

“Unfortunately, when they sent us the draft, certain articles were missing from the collective agreement, and when we met with them, they said it was an error,” Bailey told a news conference. “We know this is a season where you have a lot of traveling, our loved ones are coming into the country, etc. and we do not want to be an obstacle, but we have reached the point where enough is enough, and we are asking good industrial relations common sense prevail, and the board reverts to the initial position of their negotiations which was that they were on agreement with all positions that the association had put forward for the final settlement of these negotiations.”

Goalpost Moved

Bailey told reporters that December 6 had been set aside as a date for the signing of the agreement but that “a few days before, the company would have written to us and said that the board had a new position, and their view is that two of the articles should have been kept as unresolved.” He said that this meant that the articles would have been removed “because they are articles existing in the current agreement, and as a result of that, they moved the goalpost on us.

Dispute Continues

“They have put us in a position of either take it or leave it, and …we asked them to attend a meeting with us….since the decision came from the board level, they declined that meeting. ‘This morning, before we would have had this press conference, the association chairman would have been called out of his bed to meet with the company’s chief executive officer,” he said, noting that the articles in question had been in place since 2021.

CAL Response

Last month, CAL said it welcomed Finance Minister Colm Imbert’s announcement that he had authorized the offer it has recommended to TTALPA to settle ongoing salary negotiations. “As per the statement from the Minister issued on October 30th, 2024, the offer comprises a four percent increase in salaries to cover the period from September 2015 to August 2020. In addition, there is the offer of a further salary increase to cover September 2020 to August 2023,” CAL said in a statement. It remained “optimistic that a satisfactory conclusion can be reached in this dispute and all parties can direct their full focus to the continued success and growth of the airline.”

Pilot Protests

CAL pilots have been staging several protests over what they described as failed wage negotiations with the airline in recent weeks. They also expressed their disappointment at the need for a response to a letter hand-delivered to Imbert’s office on October 14. The letter contained proposals for the 2015-2020 negotiation period, as the pilots are working under the terms and conditions of a collective labor agreement for 2010-2015.

Conclusion

The dispute between TTALPA and CAL management is ongoing, and it remains to be seen how it will be resolved. The pilots are seeking a fair and equitable settlement, while the airline is trying to avoid disruptions to its service.

FAQs

Q: What is the dispute about?
A: The dispute is about the salary increases for pilots and the hijacking of negotiations by CAL management.

Q: What is the current offer from CAL?
A: The current offer is a four percent increase in salaries to cover the period from September 2015 to August 2020, and a further salary increase to cover September 2020 to August 2023.

Q: Why are the pilots protesting?
A: The pilots are protesting because they feel that their wages are not being fairly negotiated and that they are being held hostage by CAL management.

Q: What is the next step in the dispute?
A: The next step is for the parties to continue negotiating and trying to reach a settlement. If a settlement is not reached, the dispute could escalate and disrupt the airline’s service.