No strikes of Belgian Ryanair pilots for two months, but only if negotiations go well

Belgian-based Ryanair pilots suspend their strikes for two months. If the negotiations with management go well! In the past two months, the pilots have staged four two-day strikes.

The AVC Puls trade union announced that the parties had agreed that no pilot strike would disturb the skies of Brussels South Charleroi Airport (BSCA) for two months. But in exchange, management will have to commit to truly negotiating without wanting at all costs to impose its decisions, among other things, regarding working hours.

“This communication is however largely optimistic,” reacted Felipe Van Keirsbilck, secretary general at the CNE union. “It is true that protocols were signed this Friday,” in which Ryanair and the Christian union note the upcoming negotiations. “If these negotiations go well and really continue, we will not strike.”

If, on the other hand, negotiations fail, the staff will resort to a strike as a means of putting pressure on management.

And the union’s demands are clear. They consist of three points: respect for the law on wages, minimum compliance with the agreement on rest times, and the return to pilots’ income “before Covid and with indexation” planned to cope with inflation.

About the last point, Ryanair says that all its pilots, except the Belgian ones, have accepted a salary increase. However, Ryanair does not take inflation into account in its calculations, and Belgium is one of the few European countries where indexation is compulsory.

“If we obtain these three results then, no, there will be no more strikes,” concludes Felipe Van Keirsbilck.

A federal mediator has also been appointed to attend future social consultations.