Airline jobs safe as staff upskill

Cabin crew jobs at Loganair have been saved thanks to training courses supported by the Scottish Government.

Trade union Unite Scotland has welcomed the news that up to 35 cabin crew with Loganair, which has a base at Glasgow Airport, have had the threat of redundancy lifted.

Last July, Unite launched a campaign to ‘Save Scotland’s Airports’ after widespread disruption throughout the aviation industry caused by the pandemic.

Unite worked with the Scottish Government and Scottish Union Learning to create a fund that would allow employees to upskill and protect their current job role.

Cabin crew staff from across Scotland took part in 13 training courses which were tailored to fit in their current role, including inflight safety information being translated into British Sign Language, as well as learning the basics that could be transferred into other situations outside of the job.

Other courses included autism awareness, Spanish and employability skills, with all courses provided by City of Glasgow college.

Pat McIlvogue, Unite industrial officer, said: “The news that 35 jobs in Loganair have been saved through our joint working is very welcome news for cabin crew workers.

“Aviation was one of the first industries to have been hit by the Covid- 19 pandemic, and it will be one of the last to recover, so innovative initiatives like upskilling workers through learning sign language and autism awareness to prepare for the upturn is vital.”