Engineers at Air NZ to strike three days

WELLINGTON: Engineers working for Air New Zealand have voted to strike for three days next week over ongoing pay and working conditions disputes.

The union representing engineering and logistics workers, E tu, said while it remains in mediation with the company, workers voted for a threeday strike from December 21.

The union said the industrial action was in response to the company’s low offer and requests for cuts to sick leave and overtime.

E tu head of aviation Savage said the decision to strike on the 22 and 23 December was not made lightly.

However, Air New Zealand said it hoped a third day of negotiations with unions would avert the strike action.

Air New Zealand’s Anita Hawthorne said disruption was inevitable but the airline was working on contingency plans to keep flights moving.

At this stage, no flight delays or cancellations were in place for the days of the proposed strikes and normal fare conditions remained, Ms Hawthorne said.

The airline has said that the average income of the staff prepared to go on strike is $115,000, but the Aviation and Marine Engineers Association said a lot of that salary was based on overtime.

Spokesman Stan Renwick said engineers worked more than 55 hours a week and fatigue was a big concern.

The airline’s turboprop fleet will not be affected by any action as the aircraft are maintained by another work group. — RNZ