LIAT sick out “unfortunate”

The sick out by about 20 LIAT pilots last Sunday has been described as unfortunate in the midst of the positive atmosphere being created at the airline.

This is according to Acting Prime Minister Sir Louis Straker.{{more}}

However chairman of the Leeward Islands Airline Pilot Association (LIALPA), Michael Blackburn has backed the industrial action taken by the pilots.

Sir Louis, speaking at a press conference last Tuesday told journalists that the pilots’ action, which mainly affected the northern Caribbean, came as a surprise as negotiations between the airline and the pilots were ongoing.

“The outstanding issues are under discussion,” said Sir Louis.

He said that LIAT was now coming out of the red and striding into the black on the heels of the crucial financial package that has been secured from the Caribbean Development Bank.

The shareholder governments, Barbados, Antigua and Barbuda and St Vincent and the Grenadines received US$60.5 million to assist with the financial and institutional restructuring of LIAT. The governments have been loaned US$32.7 million, US$21.8 million, and US$5.4 million respectively, as well as a grant directly to LIAT of US$0.5 million.

Approval was granted at a meeting of the CDB’s Board of Directors at the Bank’s Headquarters in Barbados on July 26.

Sir Louis said that the pilots’ action took the management by surprise and said “I trust that the pilots would cooperate and every stake holder will do their part to make LIAT viable and better able to serve the region.”

Blackburn for his part says that negotiations with management broke down last week.

“It was a situation caused by total frustration and discontent and the company is fully aware of that situation,” Blackburn said during a recent interview with a regional news network.

Blackburn said that while the union had accepted the company’s (LIAT) wage hike offer, they are unwilling to compromise on certain matters relating to flight and duty time limitations of the contract, and safety issues. (KJ)