Summary

  • Strikes due to high inflation, cost of living, and protecting rights cause travel disruptions.
  • Flight delays and cancelations are common during strikes, affecting passengers and airlines.
  • Flight attendants and pilots demand better pay and conditions, leading to protests and strikes.

Strikes occur when airport and airline employees refuse to work as they demand better pay and conditions. Last year, extreme weather events, staffing issues in some air traffic control towers, and strikes caused widespread travel disruption.

Since the pandemic, airline delays have worsened due to staffing. Air travel is experiencing a resurgence, and as more people take to the skies, considering potential strikes becomes essential for travelers.

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The underlying reasons for strikes are high inflation, the rising cost of living, and the desire to protect rights and working conditions.

In 2023, flight delays and cancelations were exacerbated due to regular strikes across the UK and Western Europe. The strikes involved airline staff, air traffic controllers, security personnel, and baggage handlers, causing flight planning and scheduling difficulties.

Airlines have earlier warnings and some level of control over their own staff’s strikes. However, they can also be affected by strikes at airports or other sources, forcing them to cancel additional flights at the last minute to comply with lowered capacity requirements.

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Photo: PeopleImages.com – Yuri A / Shutterstock

These flight delays and cancelations are incredibly impactful to passengers, as they are often not eligible for full compensation. Late or last-minute cancelations, in particular, usually cause passengers to lose money on other travel and holiday bookings.

Airlines are generally obligated to provide care and alternative flight arrangements in the event of strike action, but not necessarily any further financial compensation. Under EU and UK law, airlines must offer compensation for cancelations caused by events under their control. Direct strike action by their staff may qualify, but action elsewhere will not. There have been many complexities regarding recent strikes, and the law continues to be clarified by decided cases.

Flight attendant strikes

In February, thousands of flight attendants across three unions picketed in front of 30 US, UK, and Guam airports to demand fair contracts with significant pay increases. According to the Association of Flight Attendants (AFA), new agreements are overdue. This historic action is the first time 100,000 flight attendants at 24 airlines, currently in contract negotiations, had protested in unison.

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Flight attendants have seen unruly behavior from passengers and short staffing in recent years as the airline industry returns to profitability post-pandemic. Flight attendants at several US airlines, including American, Delta, and Southwest, are seeking new contracts. Many cite similar concerns over boarding pay. Delta Air Lines is the only major airline that’s budged on this policy so far, offering employees half pay during boarding starting in 2022.

“Delta management announced this evening that Flight Attendants will be paid for boarding. It seems they are feeling the heat. Keep going! Every improvement they add now will get locked in when we vote for our union because they can’t retaliate and take it away.” – Association of Flight Attendents (AFA)

Flight attendants do life-saving work daily, from responding to medical emergencies to deescalating conflict or fighting fires. The world recognizes how vital flight attendant work is when horrific accidents like Japan Airlines Flight 516 or Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 result in all lives being saved on the plane.

Pilot strikes

Pilots’ demands for higher pay and better schedules are the main reasons for recent labor issues. On June 29, hundreds of Aer Lingus pilots participated in an eight-hour strike at Dublin Airport in a bitter dispute with the airline over pay. The pilots, all in full uniform, started at Aer Lingus’s head office on the airport site and walked past the two terminal buildings twice, holding placards and banners.

The protest caused significant traffic disruption around the airport as pilots formed a picket line at the main roundabout at the entrance to the airport. Aer Lingus was forced to cancel 120 flights, affecting about 17,000 passengers, and apologized for the disruption.

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Photo: BBC

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Strikes by airport and airline employees demanding better pay and conditions have led to widespread travel disruptions, exacerbated by extreme weather, staffing shortages, and the pandemic since 2020.

Last year, regular strikes across the UK and Western Europe involving various airline and airport personnel resulted in frequent flight delays and cancelations, posing challenges for airlines in planning and scheduling and often leaving passengers without total compensation for their losses.

Significant unrest included thousands of flight attendants from three unions picketing for fair contracts and pay raises, with flight attendants at major US airlines also seeking new contracts focusing on boarding and deplaning pay. Historic protests and complex negotiations highlight the industry’s recovery challenges post-pandemic, underscoring the essential, life-saving roles of flight attendants and pilots’ demands for better pay and schedules.

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Aer Lingus Cancels 244 Flights This Week Due To Pilot Strike

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