Brussels Airlines pilot unions serve strike notice for 11 May

The trade unions representing the pilots of Brussels Airlines have served a strike notice for Friday, 11 May 2018. They are not happy with the proposals made by the management with regard to wages, pensions and work schedules, which were accepted by only 8 percent of them. Eighty percent of the pilots who responded to the consultation want a strike.

In 2012, when Brussels Airlines made heavy losses, the pilots accepted pay cuts and longer working hours to keep the company alive. Now that profits are back, the pilots would like to get their share of the profits, especially since their working conditions are below the Lufthansa Group average.

Brussels Airlines reacted on its website, as well as on Twitter, Facebook, and other social media:

“We regret that, despite a substantial offer made by the Brussels Airlines management, the pilot union delegation has called for strike actions as of May 11th. Between today and May 11th, negotiations between the Brussels Airlines management and the union delegations continue to take place. In case of strike actions as of May 11th, our flight schedule will, unfortunately, be affected, but at this moment in time, we do not yet have a full view on the impact. We are working on creating a reduced flight schedule for that day and will update our website with more information as soon as possible:

https://www.brusselsairlines.com/en-be/misc/alert-message.aspx

If you have a flight reservation for 11th May, we will update you as soon as possible about the status of your flight.

Therefore, we please ask you to make sure that you have given us your contact details during the booking process. If not, we urge you to add your contact details in the Manage My Booking tool.

We sincerely regret the impact that possible strike actions may cause.

Rest assured that everyone at Brussels Airlines is committed to limiting the impact of possible strike actions and to finding solutions for everyone whose travel plans may be affected.”

A conciliation meeting will be organised next Monday, 7 May. If there is no progress, strike actions will be decided as from 11 May mid-day. This would be only the second strike in the 16-year history of Brussels Airlines. The unions hope to extend the strike to cabin crew as well.

This confrontation will be a first test for the new Lufthansa-appointed CEO Christina Foerster.