Airline passengers could breathe a sigh of relief on Monday after Norwegian air traffic controllers called off the strike they’d launched just before the weekend. Their labour organization came to terms with state aviation agency Avinor Monday afternoon, after nearly six hours of renewed negotiations.
Avinor, represented by employers’ organization Spekter, and the air traffic controllers’ organization Flygelederforeningen issued a joint statement claiming they were all “extremely satisfied” that they’d reached an agreement. That in turn meant that “the strike that has rammed passengers and airline traffic is now over.”
All of the air traffic controllers who’d been called out on strike were heading back to work and would be “back on the job as soon as possible.” Avinor could also announce that airline traffic “is on its way back to normal.”
Airlines and their passengers still faced after-effects of the strike, with more delays and cancellations caused by aircraft that are out of place and the thousands of reschedulings for those stranded both in Norway and abroad. Travel insurance doesn’t cover distruptions caused by strikes, but the airlines themselves are responsible for getting passengers to their destinations.
Leaders of the organizations involved in the strike remained mum on details of their settlement, claiming they were subject to confidentiality clauses. The air traffic controllers’ leader, Robert Gjønnes, told state broadcaster NRK that they’d simply “carried out a professional and good dialogue. Dialogue is always the solution.”
Spekter leader Anne-Kari Bratten, who negotiated on behalf of Avinor, added that they’d come to terms on “a process for senior policy” for veteran air traffic controllers that include more time off for those over age 55. The air traffic controllers themselves had claimed their strike wasn’t over pay levels, which already are high compared to other workers’, but rather a need for more breaks during long shifts at work.
The two sides initially hadn’t planned to meet for new talks until Tuesday, when more air traffic controllers would also be called off the job. They later announced, however, that they’d head back to the bargaining table at 8am Monday, which lead to the settlement Monday afternoon.
Negotiations went on for nearly six hours before the two sides came to terms. Avinor leader Abraham Foss, who’s responsible for airport operations in Norway, was glad that what he called “a demanding situation for many travelers and airlines” was over. He stressed that air traffic controllers “do a very important job every single day. It’s a job that demands high competence, precision and a feeling of responsibility, which is central for secure and well-functioning aviation.”
Gjønnes, meanwhile, publicly apologized for all the disruption that the strike had caused for travelers. An estimated 87,000 people were expected to travel through OSL Gardermoen alone on Monday, lines were long at check-in and security and it would take time before airline traffic was back to normal.
“It’s unfortunate when a third party is affected by the strike, and we are very sorry about that,” Gjønnes stated in an email to Norwegian media.
NewsinEnglish.no/Nina Berglund
