All SAS pilots in Norway will be on strike from day one
If there is no agreement in the mediation for SAS ‘pilots and cabin crew, all SAS pilots in Norway will go on strike from next Wednesday.
– We have registered 254 pieces, which are all. SAS Norge Flygerforening takes out all 148 members. A total of 402 Norwegian pilots will go on strike from day one, says Roger Klokset of the Norwegian SAS Pilots’ Association to TV 2.
– For us, this is a very principled conflict. I can not comment on the mediation, but before the mediation we were very far away from each other. And we experienced that there was a bit of a stir on the questions of principle, so we see no other way out than to take everyone out.
The four pilot associations in Norway, Sweden and Denmark negotiate together as SAS Pilot Group, SPG. The negotiations take place in Stockholm.
Lockout alert
The SAS pilot has announced that more than 900 pilots in the three countries will go on strike if the mediation does not end in negotiations before the deadline, Wednesday 29 June. In Denmark, about 250 pilots work for SAS Scandinavia, write E24. In Sweden, there are 240 pilots.
On Thursday, NRK announced that SAS in Sweden will shut down employees from work if the announced pilot strike becomes a reality next week. On Friday, SAS confirms that a notice of lockout of Danish pilots has also been issued.
According to the Danish news agency Ritzau, it has also announced a lockout for cabin crew which is organized in the trade union Dansk Metal.
It is previously known that the aircraft mechanics in SAS, which is affiliated with the Danish trade union, have announced a sympathy strike from 5 July.
In Norway, it has been sent out of a well-founded permit notice to all SAS employees. As far as NRK knows, the airline warns that all employees in Norway may be laid off.
Next week
The mediation deadline is midnight on the night of June 29, which means that there may be a strike from Wednesday next week. The mediations in Stockholm started last Monday.
SAS’s press manager, Tonje Bjerve Sund, tells TV 2 that they do not want to speculate in the news that comes that all the Norwegian pilots will be taken out on strike.
– And we do not do that out of respect for that process. But as I said, we hope that the pilots do not go on strike and that there will be a solution, says Sund.
Mediation for Norwegian pilots
For the Norwegian pilots, the mediation will start next Sunday. This is in addition to the ongoing mediation for the Scandinavian pilots.
– The financial requirement is in line with the result in the front subject. Furthermore, today we only have one weekend off a month and want to increase this to two, this to be able to plan a little more free time with family and friends, says leader of SAS Norway’s aviation association in Parat, Jan Levi Skogvang.
He says the SAS pilots want a wage settlement in line with all other employees in Norway and hopes that the SAS management will meet the pilots.
– Eg. my requirements are moderate and are something SAS should be able to accept. At the same time, we register that the SAS lease is planning a strike and lockout, something we believe is unnecessary and is on our part willing to be in agreement with the employer during the mediation, says Skogvang.
The Norwegian Ombudsman Mads Ruland and mediator Richard Saue travel to Stockholm to participate in the mediations in the last three days before the deadline expires, follow the Ombudsman’s website.
Airport chaos
A strike among SAS employees could lead to further pressure during the summer holidays in Europe, where many airports are already suffering from chaos. This is especially true of the major hubs in Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Brussels, Paris and London. This can be held until the summer.
The main challenge for airports is our lack of staff to handle luggage and passengers.
In addition, there is also a risk of strikes between other airlines. Spanish cabin crew in Ryanair plan to strike from June 24 to July 2. Ryanair employees in Portugal have also announced a strike from Friday.
(© NPK)
More than 900 SAS pilots will go on strike if the mediation between SAS pilots and SAS does not end before 29 June. Photo: Terje Pedersen / NTB / NPK