Air New Zealand’s international cabin crew have voted to take strike action after what their union describes as months of bargaining and two rounds of mediation through MBIE failed to produce an agreement members can “reasonably accept”.
Flight Attendants’ Association of New Zealand (FAANZ) said it has issued strike notices to the airline, warning that flight attendants operating on Air New Zealand’s Boeing 777 and Boeing 787 aircraft intend to strike on 11, 12 and 13 February, unless the dispute is resolved beforehand.
FAANZ president Craig Featherby acknowledged the financial pressures facing the airline, but said the company is “once again asking flight attendants to give up hard-earned terms and conditions” and increase productivity “in exchange for any meaningful improvement in pay”. The union claims the current offer would see crew “just hit the living wage”, and argues inflation risks pushing them “back below a livable wage within a short time”. It also says the pay increase is being offered in return for crew trading away long-held conditions that, in its view, support a safe working environment.
“Air New Zealand Management have often highlighted that crew receive allowances while overseas. Yes, allowances do exist so the crew can buy meals and incidentals while away from home. They are not a guarantee, a bonus, and they are not a substitute for fair remuneration”.
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The more immediate concern is the union’s claim that flights are already being undermined by “preventable issues” onboard citing lack of catering and limited choice, missing equipment, inoperative seats, and broken cabin features, alongside higher-than-usual cancellations. FAANZ says flight attendants are left to “work around these issues” and apologise to customers paying premium fares.
FAANZ argues cabin crew are “integral to the airline’s success” as “safety professionals and ambassadors”, and says what members are asking for is “fair, reasonable, and long overdue”.