CAL obtains injunction against pilots as fallout from weekend 'sickness' continues

Caribbean Airlines Ltd (CAL) obtained an injunction against the TT Airline Pilots Association (TTALPA) on Monday which compelled pilots to return to work. The airline took this action after 75 pilots called in sick a total of 93 times between Saturday and Sunday, causing the airline to cancel 60 international and domestic flights.

A ruling by Industrial Court members Melvin Daniel, Albert Aberdeen and Bindimattie Mahabir said TTALPA was "restrained from taking and/or continuing to take and/or participating howsoever in industrial action within the meaning of the Industrial Relations Act, Chapter 88:01 (hereinafter referred to as "the act") including calling in sick en masse."

The union has also been told to "instruct/ or direct" its membership that they are to "immediately report for duty as rostered and as they are required to do in the normal course of their employment."

The ruling also included a warning that a penal clause could be endorsed.

"If you the within named party no 2 being the Trinidad and Tobago Airline Pilots Association or any of your members or howsoever otherwise known, classified, designated, categorised, called or described disobey this order, you will be liable to the process of execution for the purpose of compelling you to obey same."

The injunction said the orders of the court would continue until September 28.

In a statement on Monday, CAL said it sought the support of the Industrial Court after receiving calls from the pilots each indicating they were unwell and unable to report for duty.

“The airline received each of these calls around three hours before the scheduled departure times of the respective flights. CAL moved quickly to recover by pursuing alternatives and leased charters to transport the displaced passengers on the international and regional routes. The Port of Port of Spain assisted the airline’s domestic operations, by adding a special ferry sailing which took passengers to and from Tobago.”

Flights to Tobago, Barbados, Guyana, St Lucia, Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Miami, New York and Toronto were cancelled, as well as those from those locations to TT.

In a second statement on social media on Monday, CAL made it clear that other members of the operational team had been fully prepared to come out to work.

“Our entire team – from our dedicated ground staff, front-end personnel, cabin crew, reservations call centres, maintenance, and management – were, as per usual, fully prepared to ensure the smooth functioning of our flights. Despite our meticulous planning and state of readiness, we could not have anticipated or adequately prepared for these unfortunate events. We thank the entire team for their continued commitment during what was a very difficult period.”

CAL apologised to its passengers for the recent disruptions to its flights. It said the unavailability of the pilots, combined with the short notice, made it impossible to recover.

“We fully understand the frustration and extreme disappointment that such unexpected cancellations can bring, especially when many of you were eagerly anticipating long-awaited vacations, and crucial academic journeys.”

The airline said it was saddened by the developments, as it had made significant strides over the years, with the unwavering support of the taxpayers of TT. It said that support had enabled it to enhance its services, expand its route network, and continually improve the travel experience for its valued customers.

A Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC) article said director-general of the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) Egbert Field said CAL had informed him flights had been disrupted owing to “human resource issues” and he would await an update from CAL on Monday and analyse the situation in order to advise public works ministers Juan Edghill and Deodat Indar.

“I did ask them (CAL) when they expect to have this disruption resolved and they indicated they couldn’t give me a time but they were working on it,” he said.

In a statement on Sunday, CAL said it was currently in negotiations with TTALPA over a collective agreement for the period 2015-2018. CAL has operations in Guyana and Jamaica. Newsday was unable to ascertain whether wage negotiations were also taking place in those territories.

In 2020, CAL pilots represented by TTALPA took a 57 per cent pay cut until January 2021 in order to keep their jobs, as the airline industry was grounded by the pandemic. That was to be renegotiated.

In August 2021, CAL issued a statement which said its unaudited financial results for the six months ended June 2021 showed an operating loss of $326.6 million (US$48 million). It said its performance was consistent with the same period for 2020, when it reported an operating loss of $331 million (US$48.7 million).

In August 2022, CAL said the operation of the airbridge was seeing consistent losses amounting to about US$9,613,100, with each flight hour costing US$17,306.

On August 8, retired director general of Civil Aviation Ramesh Lutchmedial called for a new model of flight operations, claiming each flight between Trinidad and Tobago loses at least $40,800, even when it is filled.

Last week, proposed Air Canada flights from Toronto, Canada to TT were shelved owing to industrial relations conflicts between staff and that airline. Reports are that, in addition to complaints that flight attendants were not paid for some hours worked, the airline was also  hindered by a shortage of pilots and equipment.