Aer Lingus CEO Stephen Kavanagh has apologised for "hurt and upset" caused by a newspaper article, claiming there was increased surveillance being carried out on staff.

The piece in the Sunday Independent last week claimed millions of euro worth of goods had been stolen from passengers, members of staff and in company stock.

It also claimed the airline was rolling out CCTV cameras across Dublin Airport, and engaging private security to carry out random patrols of staff areas.

The paper said the detail was contained in a memo to staff from the carrier's chief operating officer, Mike Rutter.

The airline has said a meeting was held with senior management and staff and union representatives on Thursday "to discuss these most serious concerns".

Following this, Mr Kavanagh offered "a sincere apology and regret for the hurt and upset caused by this misleading article."

He also said that Aer Lingus "had not been the source for the article."

He added that workers had been subject to "hurtful and demeaning comments" over the course of the last week, and sincerely regretted the upset that had been caused.

The company will also make a donation on behalf of staff of €25,000, split equally between their chosen charities, Pieta House and Focus Ireland.