Aircraft unions will strike at all costs on Monday. The airline’s notice of default for that doesn’t impress them.
–
The unions announced on Wednesday that a 24-hour strike will start at Brussels Airlines from 5 a.m. on Monday, out of dissatisfaction with the lack of solutions for the high workload, and because, according to them, the management does not respect a number of signed collective agreements.
The management initially reacted ‘very surprised’, and went on a counter-attack on Thursday. In a letter to unions, she threatened legal action if the strike was not called off by 11 a.m. Friday. Should the strike continue, the management would recover the expected damage – an estimated 2.5 million euros – from the unions.
According to the management, the unions have not followed the rules, because a reconciliation plan was recently drawn up during a reconciliation meeting, after which social peace is normally guaranteed.
‘Completely legal’
The unions see it differently. Such a report is a recommendation and is not the same as an agreement between the parties, says Tim Roelandt of the liberal trade union ACLVB.
The unions themselves refer to strike notices that have been running at Brussels Airlines since last summer, and that cover Monday’s action. ‘We are right in our shoes’, says Olivier Van Camp of the socialist trade union BBTK. ‘The notices have been submitted completely legally’, says Paul Buekenhout of the Christian association ACV-Puls.
The unionists repeat that they consider the notice of default “a declaration of war”, “an outrageous way of trying to break a strike”, or yet another “attack on the right to strike”.
ACLVB member Roelandt points out that there have been enough ‘soft actions’ and warnings in recent months to justify the strike action. He regrets that the focus has shifted to this dispute “rather than tackling the real problems of the employees”.
In a joint press release, the unions say that they “see that the strong signal that Monday’s action is imminent, has reached the employer this time.” “We just hope that he finally takes responsibility and responds appropriately. Namely with solutions to problems, and not with threats of legal sanctions.’
‘With this, the management is shooting itself in the foot’, says BBTK’er Van Camp. He now also sees enthusiasm among the ground staff, who were not initially involved in the strike, to join. ACLVB trade unionist Roelandt also has the impression that the demarche of the management can just fuel the willingness to strike.
In recent months there have been several smaller actions in protest against the lack of structural solutions for the high workload. In mid-November, there was another protest in front of the warehouse in which Brussels Airlines presented its new logo.
.
– .
