Brazil’s airline pilots and flight crew announce strike starting Monday

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Airline pilots and flight attendants on Wednesday, November 24, decided to strike indefinitely starting next Monday.

According to the National Union of Airline Flight Workers (SNA) – which represents flight crew (not ground staff) employees of Gol, LATAM, Azul, ITA, Voepass and LATAM Cargo – 50% of workers should stop every day, to keep part of the flights operating.

The workforce is demanding a 15% increase in wages, which were not readjusted last year due to the crisis triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic. Also according to the union, the airlines proposed a 3% increase.

The assembly where employees agreed to strike took place on Wednesday, and according to SNA chairman Commander Ondino Dutra, was attended by approximately 700 airline staff.

The airline sector was one of the hardest hit by the crisis last year and has not yet fully recovered. To withstand the impact caused by the pandemic, companies created unpaid leave programs – which were gradually reduced. LATAM laid off 2,700 crew members, but began hiring again in July.

LATAM, Gol, Azul and ITA did not reply to a request for comment.

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