Air New Zealand preps for labour strike

Air New Zealand said it has cancelled at least 46 widebody flights as it prepares for a labour strike by its widebody cabin crew on Thursday and Friday (12-13 February). The company said the cancellations have affected at least 9,500 customers. In a statement, union E tū said the airline’s cabin crew would strike after talks failed to resolve their concerns, urging Air New Zealand to make “a fair and realistic” offer, according to a Reuters report. “The work done by wide-body cabin crew is demanding and often misunderstood,” E tū National Secretary Rachel Mackintosh said. “They are also shift workers whose rosters change every month. They work very irregular hours…and there is no certainty in their work patterns.” The union said the strike will involve only widebody aircraft workers, with cabin crew taking action on both days. The airline said in its statement that its domestic and regional network would operate as normal, adding by retiming flights and using the wider fleet, Air New Zealand has been able to protect the majority of its Tasman and Pacific services from cancellations. The airline will also fly some cargo-only services to keep Kiwi exporters connected. Air New Zealand Chief Customer and Digital Officer Jeremy O’Brien says the airline’s priority is supporting customers through the disruption. “We have done everything possible to minimise the impact, and our teams have been working around the clock to re-accommodate customers whose flights are affected. We are very sorry for the disruption to some customers’ travel plans. Customers have been contacted directly with rebooking options and may also choose a refund or to hold the value of their ticket as credit for travel at a later date. We thank our customers for their patience and understanding and remain committed to getting them to their destination as soon as possible.” For Editorial Inquiries Contact: Editor Matt Driskill at [email protected] For Advertising Inquiries Contact: Head of Sales Sally Passey at [email protected]