Portugalia pilots ‘work-to-rule’ to run from March 12-27
Portuguese airline pilots’ union SIPLA is going ahead with a partial strike at Portugália – TAP’s low-cost arm – from March 12 to 27.
The union is going to hand TAP management a proposal to change the regulations for external contracting.
These measures were approved at an extraordinary general meeting last week by members of SIPLA – which represents the majority of Portugália pilots – in order to safeguard jobs which they say “are now at imminent risk”.
One of the reasons for the dissatisfaction relates to the regulation on the use of external contracting (RRCE), created in 1998, which was intended to act as a brake on the contracting of external flights by TAP – including Portugália, which accounts for the largest share – imposing limits which, if exceeded, revert in favour of TAP pilots through the payment of compensation.
This protocol, used by several European airlines, led to costs of €60 million last year as a result of the payment of six extra basic salaries to each TAP pilot.
Pilots of Portugália, which in 2023 carried out around 25% of TAP’s total flights, have criticise the consequences of this protocol, arguing that it only reinforces that it is “considered an external company” – when it is in fact part of the TAP organisation.
Despite having recently been transferred from TAP SGPS to TAP SA, as part of the airline’s reprivatisation, “nothing is going to change”, the union laments, adding that members fear for the future of Portugalia, which currently employs around 900 people.
To this end, a proposal to amend the current version of the RRCE was approved, involving the introduction of four points.
But the result so far appears to have been that TAP management is refusing to discuss the proposals.
According to Lusa, SIPLA contends that management decisions are being made unilaterally with the objective of extinguishing Portugália altogether. Pilots thus feel in a situation of “absolute unprotection”, and so comes the decision for the March partial strike.
Today, the union says it has managed a meeting with the Ministry of Infrastructures (currently intent on TAP’s reprivatisation).
As for TAP itself, an official source has told Lusa that the airline “is in permanent dialogue with the unions that represent the company’s workers”. ND
Source material: LUSA
