Avia Express has sacked all of its 80 pilots from July 17th and would like to hire external pilots. "The offer cuts pilot pay by 15-20 percent and at the same time increases working hours from 40 to 47.5 hours a week," -SPF

Pilots working for four regional Swedish airlines (Avia Express, Avitrans Nordic, Golden Air and Svenska Direktflyg) went out on strike early Monday, with a broader strike affecting international and charter flights on Wednesday.

Golden Air jobs, payscales and entry requirements. (http://www.pilotjobsnetwork.com/jobs/Golden_Air)
Avitrans Nordic jobs, payscales and entry requirements. (http://www.pilotjobsnetwork.com/jobs/Avitrans_Nordic)

In media the above mentioned companies call this a luxury strike. :hmm:

It's immensly important that this kind of malpractice is taken by its roots before it becomes the norm. Apparently they are taking out all of their 2000 union pilots (http://www.hangar.no/permalink/47686.html) on Wednesday if no resolution is found. Perhaps this social dumping of a work force expected to show safety standards at superman-level will finally bring a wake-up call to the authorities.. :bored: I can't understand how a company can openly operate like that without facing any reactions from civil aviation authorities or the public. What ever happened to flight safety? It's all about getting that air fare below production cost.. sorry to see people willing to risk their lives for it. :ugh:When the employer has no responsibility for its employees, you'll end up kissing your job goodbye because you decide on diverting. I'm afraid this kind of employment practice will be the single highest contributor to aviation accidents if it becomes the norm. :sad:

It is becoming very clear that the Swedish Ministry of Transportation is doing just about nothing than perhaps reading through some documents - probably because politicians now exactly nothing about aviation - yet they are the ones who pass the laws regulating it:ugh:.

It is 100% illegal to sack any or all of your workforce, to then rehinstate a few of them, at your needs, on shortterm contracts, where the pilot has to show with everything current (TR, med, own insurance plans, pension schemes etc etc). However, and this is where it gets tricky...., Skyways did claim bankruptcy, so in effect there were suddenly no jobs for anyone... That being said, they very surprisingly quick to rebrand themselves, using the same equipment etc to restart, under a different name. Yes, the suspect is suspect:ouch:

What is clear, in any matter, is that the SPF has sent a reqeust of mutual assistance to all IFALPA members. This, amongst several things, calls for a denial of members to be leased in to fly these routes while strike action is ongoing. There is also a recruitment ban out towards said airlines. And to assist crewmembers stuck away from base. Sister branch, NF, also seems very interested in the outcome and is standing by SPF. This will be a very important battle which needs to be won.

I also hope that all newbies here take an interest to follow this matter, as it will directly influence their own hiring process down the line.

Det er "dem" nå, det blir ubehagelig fort "oss" neste gang. Desverre ser vi dette skjer innenfor flere og flere bransjer, og det er jo dette folk streiker om nå til dags: retten til fast jobb, i stedet for at laveste tilbyder skal gjøre din jobb på timebasis, uten rettigheter. Dog eats dog...

The dirt campaign against the pilots in the media speaks for itself. Some of the management guys think their commuter planes would fly safe with a monkey. With this kind of attitude do you think they will listen to a contract pilot how raise concern about the safety? Do you think they will spend a dime more in training? Will they care if the pilots don't get enough sleep? And will the pilot how didn't take off because it was unsafe still have his contract?

Sure a new pilot fresh out of flight school will take a contract like this since the first job is hard to find, but where will the experience be in companies like this?

pilots discussed inexperience during crash (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/30710275#30710275)

Do we need a crash like Colgan Air in Scandinavia to make people realize what is at stake here?

You, the pilots, are the only ones that can stop this though. Ask yourself, and your colleagues, if you are willing to put your money where your mouth is and turn down any deal that is not full time, negotiated by the union etc etc, even if it means being without a job for 2,4,6,10 (?) months.

My guess? Enough people will prostitute themselves and screw those of you willing to fight, after all they are just pilots........

Good luck!

It`s on!

According to boarding.no there will be strike action tomorrow, Wed 9th, from 05.00 - 13.00 hrs LT amongst all pilots organized with SPF. Exempted is ambulance, heli, and SAS-longhaul. Amongst the big guns putting their boots down are TUI, Norwegian.se and SAS pilots. :D Let`s hope nobody is foolish enough, for the sake of T&Cs for the future, to cross the picket line. :=

bfisk, ja det er hos søta bror nå, men vi bor alle i samme nabolag (danskene og finnene også), så vi kan ikke ha enorme forskjeller straks vi passerer grensene. Noen forskjeller lokalt blir det naturligvis, men retten til å ha fast jobb, og førsterett til tilbakekallelse etter oppsigelse grunnet overtallighet er noen av grunnpillarene. :D Håper noe av dette får passasjerene til å åpne øynene litt. Glansdagene fram til slutten av 80-årene sluttet nettopp da.

Nope, "sympatistrejken" är uppskjuten 7 dagar.

The extended strike was postponed by the mediator (google tanslation...) today, supported by the Swedish MBL §49 (law of co-decision). This gives the mediating-institution the right to postpone one part of a conflict or sympathy action for 14 days and only once during each assignment.

Because this left the regional pilots without the planned sympathy action and because this was what was required to reach some sort of significant level of importance, the regional conflict was postponed by the union's decision.

It apears this was tactically, a well played card on the employer's side, but it was really the only option if the union was to come across as a responsible and pragmatic function in media.

I trust this will give both delegations time to find solutions in the remaining questions and also give us the chance to thuroughly explain this in media, as it seems to be a question not many in the general public can understand.

If not, all 2000 pilots will go on strike next wednesday.

/LnS

Det er på sikt, kun europeisk/internationalt lovverk som kan rydde opp i de senere 20 års økende slavetilstander i luftfarten !
Det er myndighetene som må regulere i større grad enn i dag. Jeg tror dereguleringen for mange år siden var bra, men samtidig lite gjennomtenkt.
Nå har vi erfaring med denne dereguleringen...har delvis fungert, mulig frem til nå, men tydligvis ikke lenger.
Det er en ting som driver mennesker (i ledende stillinger)- penger ! Da er det viktig å ha minimumsgrenser som styrer alle deltakere, på tvers av selskap og land, med feks regler for minste lønn, hviletid(som fungerer), fast ansettelse som utgangspunkt, mm.
Det er ting som gjør luftfart spesiell sammenliknet med alle andre profesjoner. Derfor bør/skal regelverket tilpasses dette. (Sammenlikning med andre landbasserte yrker er helt på feil jorde).

Dette er som jeg tidligere har nevnt, for meg, en ny epoke, iforhold til å ønske mer statlig kontroll. Er generelt ikke tilhenger av dette, men erfaring med luftfarten dikterer det motsatte. Her skal det ikke være rom for "cowboy-lars og vennene hans". Den eneste effektive måten er regulering strengere enn den som eksisterer i dag...beklaglig men sant!
Vi må få alle rundt oss til å forstå at billettprisene i dag er lattelig lave.
Selskapene skal tjene penger, ikke tape. Spillereglene skal være like, akkurat som i idretten. Det skal ikke være slik at de selskapene som har de beste juristene, er de som går av med seieren.
Til nå gjenstår det å se hva myndighetene finner på. Men en ting er sikkert, vi må implementere nye regler raskt og samtidig i europa, med tanke på konkuransen selskapene i mellom. Ellers vil det kun være de på 21 som bor på gata, med en pose med eiendeler og store poser under øya, som sitter foran der å sover, i nærmeste fremtid.
Lykke til i sverige nå, -og lykke til alle oss andre snart.. En trend må stanses NÅ ! Heia Sverige !!!

f:cool:

Dette er også en viktig korsvei for oss alle, og nettopp derfor er det utrolig viktig at alle, også de som ikke blir berørt direkte, er med å slutte opp om dette. Får det først fotfeste, blir det garantert vanskelig å stoppe senere!

Slaget står i Sverige nå ja, men praksisen med dårlige kontrakter og monkey business fins her på berget også. Ref: Airwing

Heard that Golden Air is offering tax free contracts for their pilots based in Finland. This must have a negative impact for Finnish pilots, since Golden Air dont have to pay tax, retirement etc. from its pilots and therefore can get their pilots cheaper than other companies on Finnish pilots expense.

Rumor is that all pilots taking a taxfree contract with Golden Air in Finland will be reported to the local tax authorities. Then its up to the individual pilot to justify if he or she is able to lift a taxfree salary according to the law.

Agency contracts are not tax free. It is simply up to the contractor to arrange their own tax and social security payments, normally in the country where he/she lives permanently. If the contracts offered in Finland are more than 6 months long then the pilots will have to pay tax in Finland. Social security payments may still be made in another European country, normally for 1 year but this can be extended to 2 years. Double taxation agreements should ensure tax payments are not required in more than one country. Agency rates are generally higher for this reason. When the agency fees are taken into account, it probably wouldn't save the company much money when compared to an employee although it would make hiring and firing somewhat easier.

Is has been mentioned, but remember that the governments decide what is tax-free and what is taxable, not the companies or agencies. And unfortunately, they will hold YOU to it, not the organization you "work" for. :oh:

Ser at flyplassvektere er ute i streik nå, og skal trappes opp fra tirsdag hvis ikke konflikten løser seg. Er det noen som vet hva som er deres krav?

Det er litt av en paradoks at i nabolandet vårt må man streike for å prøve å beholde arbeidsbetingelser som ikke er all verden, men bedre enn å stå i kontrakt-kø, mens på denne siden av grensa så streikes det hvis man ikke får mer og mer.

Er spent på hva som skjer i Sverige på tirsdag. Stå på kolleger! Dere har mange bak dere! :D:ok:

Today, SPF and Avia Express reached an agreement where the company is now re-employ 26 full-time pilots. The company's operations has decreased, but all the pilots that will be used will now become employees of the company. :D

I have not read the agreement yet but this must be seen as a victory :ok:

Hurrah! :ok: