Yahoo Finance TIGERAIR STRIKE: Friday morning flights impacted before long weekend
Australian budget airline Tigerair has cancelled or delayed Friday morning flights due to strike action from the pilots’ union over stalled pay negotiations.
Members of the Australian Federation of Air Pilots, which represents 150 of the 190 pilots employed by Tigerair, will not work between 5am and 9am Friday — meaning about 15 flights have already been reorganised by the airline.
“The AFAP has lost patience with Tigerair after two years of negotiation and no pay rise for members,” said the AFAP’s Twitter account.
AFAP senior industrial officer James Lauchland said that even though Tigerair pilots flew the same hardware as their counterparts at Qantas, Virgin and Jetstar, the conditions are not the same.
“The current agreement is well below industry standards, both in terms of pay and conditions. Tigerair pilots are simply looking for a fair deal,” he said.
The changes have affected more than 2500 passengers on the day leading into Australia Day long weekend, according to Fairfax Media.
A Tigerair spokesperson told Yahoo Finance that passengers were already informed earlier this week of the “re-design” of Friday’s schedule due to possible industrial action.
Those affected have been put on flights with parent company Virgin Australia or other Tigerair flights, with delays ranging between two to four hours.
Because the schedule was previously rearranged, it is understood the airline is not classifying the changes as cancellations or delays.
Further disruptions during the actual long weekend is also on the cards, with AFAP members potentially declining to fly planes with “non-safety related defects”.
Tigerair is continuing talks with the AFAP to come up with a new enterprise agreement, according to the airline spokesperson.
“We look forward to reaching a mutually beneficial outcome as soon as possible,” she said.
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