SAS and pilots’ unions yesterday failed again to reach an agreement to end strike action, which threatens the company’s ability to access “bridge funding” without which it could forced to drastically reduce its staff or collapse.
SAS and workers’ unions held talks throughout Thursday to end the strike, which involves most of the company’s pilots at the height of the tourist season. At the center of interest of the talks were the terms related to the company’s financial rescue plan. Talks broke down shortly after midnight today as the strike entered its 12th day and will continue throughout the day.
“There are a number of issues that are important to both sides. These issues need to be resolved in order to reach an agreement,” mediator Mats Ruland told E24.
Earlier yesterday, SAS, which is owned by the governments of Sweden and Denmark, announced that the strike threatened the airline’s ability to attract capital, which is necessary to finance its restructuring.
“In such a case (continuation of the strike actions) the company will need to consider the sale of its important and strategic assets under the pressure of the situation, while it will drastically reduce the business plan, as well as the SAS fleet,” as the airline said in a statement.
The parties involved resumed collective talks to find a satisfactory solution on Wednesday after negotiations broke down on July 4.
SAS canceled 201 flights yesterday or 64% of its scheduled flight schedule (FlightAware).
The same airline announced that the strike has so far caused 2,550 flight cancellations, at an economic cost of between $94 million and $123 million. At the same time, he warned that the limited financial liquidity available to him will be quickly exhausted, in the event of the continuation of the strike.
SAS has been facing financial problems for a long time, and it will have to reduce its operating costs and also attract the interest of new investors in order to survive. The company filed for bankruptcy protection in the US on July 5.
“The strike puts the Chapter 11 process at risk, but also the company’s rescue,” said Anko van der Werf, SAS’s chief executive.
Pilots employed by SAS Scandinavia, a subsidiary of the SAS group, said they would agree to a limited pay cut and less acceptable working conditions, but SAS announced that the concessions made so far they are not enough for the company to implement the rescue plan announced in February.
The unions are also demanding that pilots who lost their jobs during the pandemic retire from SAS Scandinavia, rather than compete with other external pilots for jobs with less competitive terms of employment at the recently activated SAS Link and SAS Connect, which has the headquartered in Ireland.
Engineers in Denmark, who are striking in support of the pilots, announced yesterday that they are ending their strike action. This development means that SAS aircraft in Copenhagen will have technical support and be able to return to service the flight schedule, immediately after an agreement is reached to end the strike with the pilots’ unions.
Engineers in Sweden do not go on strike. Pilots working on SAS Connect and SAS Link are not on strike.
SOURCE: APE-ME
Source: Capital
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