BL Premium reports that according to trade union Solidarity, a strike at airline FlySafair could commence in a few days after wage talks that began three months ago deadlocked.

The union is demanding a three-year wage deal for increases of 10.5% in year one and consumer price inflation (CPI) plus 4.5% and CPI plus 4% in the outer years of the agreement. Solidarity deputy general secretary Helgard Cronje said the airline was offering a 5.7% increase in the first year and CPI plus 1.5% in the second and third years. Cronje said FlySafair’s offer had been rejected by the vast majority of the union’s members. “The rejection is not only due to the content of the offer; it is especially due to the extremely tense relationship between the pilots and FlySafair’s management. The relationship is at an absolute low,” Cronje indicated. The union was left disgruntled after FlySafair introduced a new rostering system that Solidarity said had a “significant negative impact on pilots’ quality of life”. The roster dispute, said Cronje, was a separate matter that could trigger another possible strike “after the strike over the salary increase has ended”. Another obstacle in the salary negotiations is the company’s new policy on leave and days off. Solidarity and FlySafair will finalise the strike rules on Thursday, under the guidance of the CCMA. “The first strike regarding the salary dispute could then commence a few days later,” Cronje said.

• Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Luyolo Mkentane at BusinessLive (subscriber access only)
• Read too, Strike warning at South Africa’s biggest domestic airline, at Daily Investor

Get other news reports at the SA LabourNews home page