LIAT Airlines yesterday resumed flights after leaving passengers stranded for two days after pilots took industrial action.
In a release issued yesterday, the Antigua-based airline said that it will allow affected passengers to rebook without additional costs but warned that bookings needed to be confirmed. It said it cannot guarantee travel to passengers who turn up at the airport without making bookings.
It urged its passengers to contact their LIAT Call Centre to rebook flights. “LIAT takes this opportunity to apologise for the inconvenience caused to passengers and would like to advise the travelling public that every effort is being made to get them to their various destinations as soon as possible,” Acting Chief Executive Officer Brain Challenger was quoted as saying in the release.
However, LIAT issued an advisory yesterday saying that delays should be expected.
On June 16, the pilots of LIAT took industrial action, forcing the airline to cancel all flights. The pilots are represented by the Leeward Islands Airline Pilots Association (LIALPA). The action left thousands of passengers stranded in throughout the region, including in Guyana, where hundreds were left stranded over the two day action.
The airline’s management has since expressed surprise at the basis for industrial action taken by the pilots, given the issues highlighted by the pilot’s association. It added that the Caribbean public is being held to ransom where the issue is concerned.
On Thursday, the airline had met with LIALPA to implement measures to restore its service and “to deal with the severe distress that this action has caused the Caribbean public.” The airline, which has been facing financial problems in keeping its flights in the air, operates two flights daily to Guyana.
Thursday’s meeting had sought to address the settlement of all retroactive public holiday payments with a resolution by the industrial court being agreed upon by the board after consultation with the Attorney General of Antigua and Barbuda.
LIAT explained that it had followed the former existing law which exempted from holiday pay, pilots, cabin crews and management employees when working on public holidays. It was noted that the matter was subsequently reviewed at a meeting with the Attorney General of Antigua and Barbuda in May 2009 and in the light of issues raised about ambiguities in the then existing law, LIAT’s management agreed to make the payments to those categories of employees even in advance of the revised ministerial order which is now in place.
No word has since been issued on the outcome of Thursday’s meeting but LIAT is apologising for the disruption in services to customers. “We recognise that the pilot’s action has resulted in severe hardships to the travelling public who we would like to thank for their continued patience and understanding during this difficult period,” Challenger said.
The company also expressed its gratitude to its employees who the release said “have come under tremendous pressure over the past two days, especially employees on the frontline who had to deal with disrupted customers.”
LIAT’s management has been plagued with disputes with the airline’s management over the years, this latest dispute leaving passengers in various Caribbean destinations stranded and with limited travel options between each Caribbean territory.