The common trade union front at skeyes has issued a surprise strike notice, catching the management off guard.
The strike notice follows extended discussions between the company and trade union representatives regarding a new planning mechanism. This mechanism, which has been mutually agreed upon, aims to incorporate necessary rest periods into air traffic controllers’ schedules and ensure a fair distribution of workload. It also provides greater predictability in their work schedules, allowing for better personal life planning, and enhances air traffic safety through strict adherence to ‘fatigue management’ rules.
Despite the strike notice, the management plans to initiate a conciliation procedure to address the unions’ remaining concerns, upholding the company’s tradition of long-term, constructive consultation.
This article is a skeyes PR joke right?
It is factually wrong from start to finish.
Suddenly previous agreements are overruled and interpretations are once again changed, even ones made on paper, giving skeyes the power to add +150h to a controllers roster nearly at will.
The planning mechanism was on trial, so it is currently not mutually agreed on whatsoever, it does not incorporate even belgian social law minima, it does not provide a better balance or a more evenly distributed workload, it decreases work life balance even further than before as the final roster is now delayed another 2 weeks over the previous system and this planning mechanism is seperated from the fatigue management rules.
The ‘fatigue management’ and the supposedly resulting ‘enhanced safety’ are both empty concepts as it allows skeyes to plan controllers for more than 15 or 20 working days in a row, the skeye is the limit.
The company has a long history of spitting in their employees’ faces and calling it a constructive social dialogue.
If a strike notice in response is a surprise, perhaps it is time to give the social dialogue in the hands of someone who knows what the concept really entitles.
Perhaps Bart Neyens, who ‘represented’ employees’ interests with socialist union ACOD for years, who blindly signed any document skeyes placed in front of him, and is now suddenly appointed ‘industrial relations manager’ at skeyes can make a difference?
As long as Mr. De Cuyper is at skeyes doing his thing – anything to make the numbers work-, no strike announcement should come as a surprise.
Dear Phoenixx, yesterday we presented the view of the trade unions and today we show the view of skeyes management. A balanced report should always show the two sides of the story, and this is what we did. Thanks for providing again the workers opinion in a different way.
Respectfully, but if you are simply going to report on someone’s opinion or point of view, I suggest you make that clear in the article by adding “coming from skeyes spokesperson X”
I compare the articles and in yesterday’s article I see:
*quote in italic* “says the ACV Transcom union in a press release.”
“according to the union”
*quote in italic* “states ACV Transcom.”
*quote in italic* “They say”
In your article today, I see no quotes, no italic, no reference to the source of any of these statements and I see everything listed as if they are facts or truths.
I am all too well aware of the public vs actual views of the skeyes management, and the power they have to influence public opinion against us, but it would grant you credibility and at least the impression of objectivity if you would present both sides’ PR views in the same way.