Irish flag carrier Aer Lingus has been accused of “union busting tactics” in response to cabin crew members based at Manchester Airport (MAN) calling a four-day strike.
The Unite union announced on October 17, 2025, that 130 Aer Lingus cabin crew staff members had voted for industrial action over salaries.
90% of voting Unite members rejected an offer for a 12% pay rise over two years, instead opting to walk out from October 30 to November 2, 2025.
The strike will affect flights departing from Terminal 2 at Manchester Airport for transatlantic destinations including Orlando, New York and Barbados.
In a statement, Unite said the airline was attempting to navigate around the strike by using non-Unite affiliated cabin crew staff to run flights between Manchester and Dublin, with passengers transferring to/from international flights in the Irish capital.
One Aer Lingus passenger caught up in the disruptions told AeroTime that they had received a text during the evening of October 16, 2025, advising them of the impending strike.
The passenger was due to fly directly from New York to Manchester on October 31, 2025, but will now fly to Dublin and then on to Manchester on the same day.
According to Unite, while it “recognizes” the 12% pay rise offer “seems like a high number,” the “base salaries are so low workers have struggled to afford basics such as housing and bills”.
Unite General Secretary Sharon Graham said: “It is completely unacceptable that hardworking staff at such a profitable airline are unable to afford the basics while senior management are making millions. Unite will not stand for it. This dispute will no doubt cause disruption to flights, but the blame lies squarely with Aer Lingus who is putting profits over people.”
The union added: “Crew based in Manchester have far lower flying allowances than their colleagues based in Dublin. Aer Lingus has offered its Manchester workers an increase of $15 in the US overnight allowance to $130, however this does not go far enough to address the imbalance.”
Unite also claims that three Aer Lingus top executives, including its CEO and CFO, “earned the bulk of almost €2.8m in core director remuneration paid last year”.
Aer Lingus response
Aer Lingus told AeroTime that it was “disappointed” about the outcome of the ballot for industrial action after negotiating with Unite in “good faith”.
A spokesperson for the airline said: “Aer Lingus and Unite reached agreement on two separate comprehensive and market competitive pay deals which Unite then recommended to its members, the latter being based on a recommendation following a detailed conciliation process at ACAS.”
They added: “Aer Lingus will now focus on communicating directly with impacted customers with a view to reaccommodating them where possible and minimising the disruption caused to them.”
