Airline workers’ strike in Brazil enters 2nd day

The stoppage staged by pilots and flight attendants (Dec. 20) has entered its second day. From 6 am to 8 am, operations were once again halted at major airports in São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Campinas, Porto Alegre, Brasília, Belo Horizonte, and Fortaleza.

According to national airport authority Infraero, Santos Dumont airport, in downtown Rio, registered 11 delays and five flight cancellations. Even though operations gradually returned to normal over the morning, some lines are having to accommodate passengers on other flights.

In the view of Leonardo Souza, director of Brazil’s National Union of Aeronauts, the stoppage was joined by more workers on the second day. “Today the turnout was a little higher than yesterday. What we’ve heard is that it’s become stronger, and impact on flights today was greater nationwide,” he told Agência Brasil.

In addition to correction for inflation, the workers demand a real five-percent increase in pay and better working conditions, including the strict observance of scheduled leaves, which workers argue is not taking place.

The duration of the strike, the director added, remains indefinite, with daily suspension of activities between 6 am and 8 am. He also said that talks with the companies have not advanced and the proposal presented over the weekend by the employers’ union of a real gain of 0.5 percent is still rejected.

“We want to work, but the public must understand that this movement doesn’t concern pay alone. Of course we need it, yes, we’re asking for the consumer index plus five percent due to successive salary losses over the last three years, as we had salary cuts during the pandemic, but we’re also asking for basic conditions. For example, the companies should comply with the planned leave. Our schedules are exhausting,” he declared.

The companies

The National Union of Airline Companies (SNEA) said it has observed the strike at airports, adding that airlines “have worked and will continue to work intensively to minimize any impacts on customers.”

The note published on its website also stresses that the proposal presented by the Superior Labor Court over the weekend, as a mediator, was accepted by the companies, but rejected by the workers. “Given this, and for the protection of customers, the current decision of the court is that 90 percent of operations should be maintained during the strike period and that [national aviation regulator] ANAC should be informed of the effects of the strike.”