Airline risks bill of up to €300 million
The multimillion euro headache delivered in the form of a compensation ruling by the country’s Supreme Court has seen Portuguese airline TAP decide to appeal to the Constitutional Court.
Jornal de Negócios broke the news late last night. At issue is a Supreme Court decision affecting four cabin crew which opened a Pandora’s Box that TAP can ill afford as it tries to attract buyers in an agonisingly slow process of reprivatisation.
The bottom line of the Supreme Court ruling is that the airline faces compensating hundreds of former crew members for unfair dismissal. Union representatives have estimated the likely cost to the airline as anywhere between €200 million to €300 million
Says Lusa today, “TAP had previously filed two complaints with the Supreme Court of Justice, claiming collective bargaining autonomy. However, the Supreme Court considered the airline’s arguments to be ethically incorrect”.
The Supreme Court’s decision already applies to more than 700 cabin crew members who have formalised lawsuits, but it could also include another 1,200, warns Lusa, who will have the opportunity to take the same action against the company.
For the unions, TAP’s decision is simply a delay tactic, says Jornal de Negócios. ND
Source: Lusa
