Please Fill Out This Important Survey from International Transport Workers' Federation

2 Sep, 2022, No comments

Dear Sisters, Brothers, Comrades,

ACTION REQUIRED: Aviation workers’ survey

Ahead of the next week’s ITF Civil Aviation Conference in Montreal, we would be very grateful if you could invite your members to complete a snap survey measuring the state of the industry from a workers’ perspective. The survey should take participants approximately 1 minute to complete. The questions are straightforward and the responses will be used to support our public positioning during and after the Conference.

If you're an aviation worker, we want to hear from you. Aviation workers have been at the front line of the industry’s travel chaos for over 2 years. It’s important that we show governments, politicians, employers, and the media aviation workers’ views on how this crisis has been handled. Take 1 minute and submit your views now: https://forms.office.com/r/G6AjjjKgFx

All responses are completely anonymous.

SWISS Boss Says Airline Cabin Crew Wages Will Rise

22 Aug, 2022, No comments

Starting next month, SWISS International Air Lines cabin crew might be welcomed by a salary increase. The positive news was released by the airline's CEO, who stated that the pay rise is an attempt to retain staff and offset the increased living costs induced by inflation.

SWISS CEO Dieter Vranckx announced that cabin crew wages will likely increase starting next month. The choice stems from two main reasons; first, staff shortages that are causing unprecedented chaos in Europe and, secondly, the increased living costs brought about by inflation.

SWISS is reported to increase cabin crew salary starting next month in an attempt to address staff shortage and the increased living costs caused by inflation. Photo: Vincenzo Pace I Simple Flying

SWISS' number of employees started to decrease with the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. According to the Lufthansa Group's annual reports, by the end of 2021 the number of SWISS employees, a total of 8,743, had contracted by 13% compared to 2020 and by 17% compared to 2019. However, with the progressive relaxation of travel restrictions in 2022, airlines have been facing pent-up demand for which they were not prepared, at least in terms of workforce. To make things worse, Europe has been swept away by a wave of inflation. Living costs have therefore been increasing, with inflation reaching a record-high of 8.9% in the Eurozone in July.

"Currently, the starting salary for an entry-level SWISS cabin crew is $4,170 per month. Although this might sound like a lot, it should be borne in mind that Switzerland is one of the countries in Europe with the highest living costs, which are now being hit by inflation. Hence, the decision of the carrier to adjust the salary upwards."

https://www.msn.com/en-us/travel/news/swiss-boss-says-airline-cabin-crew-wages-will-rise/ar-AA10TneW

airBaltic will Operate SWISS Flights This Winter

22 Aug, 2022, No comments

SWISS has agreed a collaboration with Air Baltic for the coming winter timetable period. The partnership is intended to further stabilize SWISS’s flight schedules and provide even more reliability for its customers’ travel plans. It should also further ease the present pressures on the company’s cabin personnel. The collaboration envisages Air Baltic operating up to six Airbus A220-300 aircraft on SWISS’s behalf under a wet-lease agreement.

The collaboration will take the form of a wet-lease agreement (i.e. the lease-in of both aircraft and crew) under which Air Baltic will perform SWISS flights on SWISS’s behalf. The services concerned will be operated by up to six of Air Baltic’s Airbus A220-300 aircraft, which seat up to 145 passengers. SWISS itself operates 21 such twinjets. The Air Baltic aircraft will perform flights throughout the SWISS European route network which had previously been planned for SWISS’s own operation.

“This collaboration with Air Baltic will enable us to further stabilize our own flight schedules and give our customers even greater reliability for making their travel plans,” explains SWISS Chief Commercial Officer Tamur Goudarzi Pour. “On top of this, it should also help further relieve the present pressures on our cabin crew corps.”

Irrespective of this development, SWISS will continue to steadily recruit and train more of its own cabin personnel. The new collaboration with Air Baltic is also viewed as a complement to SWISS’s existing partnership with Helvetic Airways. On the latter front, in addition to the six Helvetic aircraft already operated all year round on SWISS’s behalf, further Helvetic Airways equipment may also be flexibly deployed on SWISS routes in future to cover peaks in demand.

Cabin Crew Day 2022 Boarding Pass

30 May, 2022, No comments

Click Here for Cabin Crew Day 2022 Boarding Pass

May 31 is Cabin Crew Day:

Support our demand for safety and respect

We are cabin crew, the first responders of the sky. We save lives when passengers fall ill at 30,000 feet. We help deliver babies, calm anxious flyers, stop fights breaking out, and evacuate you safely if things go wrong.

The pandemic has affected us all. For us cabin crew, we have continued working while also facing uncertainty about our careers, endured long periods of isolation and extended exposure to the virus, and faced big increases in angry passengers.

Yes to Safety: a safe environment for cabin crew and passengers

Yes to Decent Jobs: Cabin Crew deserve fair pay and fair conditions

Yes to a Healthy Recovery: post-Covid plans should put workers’ health first

As aviation returns, and you start travelling again - on holiday, for work or to see your loved ones - we are asking you to support us as we demand safety and respect.

THIS #CABINCREWDAY SIGN UP TO SHOW YOUR SUPPORT

Pilots & Flight Attendants Page

24 Mar, 2022, No comments

Thank you for your interest and patience as we develop our new website. We intend to populate this section with news, ideas, information & suggestions of specific relevance and importance to our pilot and flight attendant members.

Please send your ideas, inputs, questions and commentaries to be published here to laaf@laaf.lv in order to create a useful, interactive dialogue among us. Thank you!