Category: Aviation

E tū, the largest union in Aotearoa New Zealand for aviation workers, welcomes Air New Zealand’s move to include a union voice in their latest round of board appointments.

The airline has appointed three new directors to its board, including veteran unionist Paul Goulter, who is currently the national secretary of New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) and has many years of experience in commercial and union leadership roles, including as a director of the Co-operative Bank.

E tū head of aviation, Savage, says the addition of a union voice to the airline’s board is a positive sign.

“It signals to us that Air New Zealand is looking to rebuild better as the aviation industry slowly recovers.

“Two-thirds of its employees are union members, so collective agreements are central to the company’s success,” Savage says.

“The airline cannot function without ongoing engagement with its unionised employees.”

Savage says Paul’s appointment will build on the work that fellow unionist Ross Wilson did in his role as an advisor to the board up until now.

“There’s no doubt that the many redundancies and how they were handled have strained the company’s relationship with members during the past year.

“However, E tū members have collectively told the company they want to have a say in the airline’s rebuild.

“They want to see a commitment from the company to being a better employer and creating decent jobs.”

ENDS

For more information and comment:
Savage, 027 590 0074

E tū is the biggest aviation union in Aotearoa New Zealand and we are proud to stand with the the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) on International Cabin Crew Day.

The aviation industry has been particularly hard-hit by the COVID-19 crisis. From massive job losses to significant health hazards, cabin crew across the globe are doing it tough. E tū supports the ITF’s priorities for 2021:

Vaccination priority – prioritises cabin crew to receive vaccines as they are front line workers and vaccination is essential for the restart of the industry. E tū is pleased that in Aotearoa New Zealand, we have made great progress here. We support other unions to achieve the same.

Recertification – Training during the pandemic has shifted from normal operations. This has affected confidence in cabin crew returning to work and dealing with high risk situations on boards. Cabin crew need to go back to permanent roles via safe, hands-on, training and standards.

Disruptive passengers – Crew are faced with an increase in disruptive passenger incidents due to the ongoing pandemic and procedures on board – the Montreal Protocol 2014, which was designed to ensure proper prosecution of disruptive passengers, remains unsigned by many countries. This protocol serves as a crucial tool to ensure offenders are correctly prosecuted and do not have an opportunity to re-offend. All countries should sign up to the protocol.

Mental health – Mental health of aviation workers has been severely affected by COVID 19 and the decimation of the industry. Mental health needs to be a priority going forward in the formation of well-being protocols, critical responses programs and return to normal operations incentives. The pandemic has shown us all the importance of focusing on well-being and mental health.

E tū aviation and border workers are looking forward to the Government’s rollout of saliva testing, which will reduce the frequency of tests done via nasal swab.

The option of saliva testing for COVID-19 for border workers will start from June, with high-risk workers prioritised first.

It means this group of workers who are subject to compulsory testing will only need to have a nasopharyngeal test every 14 days, instead of every seven days.

Saliva tests will be done around every three days in between compulsory nasal swabs.

E tū delegate and international cabin crew member Tony Quayle says he’s “heartened” to hear about the rollout of saliva testing.

“This will be a major advance on what we’ve got at the moment – anything that’s less invasive will be good.

“There are concerns for cabin crew having to get nasal swabs so often – at home and overseas – and about the long-term effects of that. The body isn’t designed to have things going up your nose all the time and repeated trauma to this area is something to consider.”

Tony says many cabin crew members have also felt “traumatised” by overseas testing – previously via a throat swab, but now a nasal swab – which is compulsory in several destinations.

“In Shanghai, for example, they require the nasal swabs to be done in both nostrils. When you’re having that done, combined with compulsory testing back home, it makes you really concerned about the whole process,” he says.

“Even though most of us have been vaccinated, our worlds have become quite uncomfortable with the restrictions and things we are doing to keep people safe. In that sense, the introduction of saliva testing is big bonus.”

E tū’s head of aviation, Savage, says the announcement is positive news for anyone who has to undergo regular tests – particularly international cabin crew.

“Cabin crew who fly internationally are currently subject to a test via nasal swab in New Zealand every seven days.

“The new saliva tests will mean they’re now able to push this out to every fortnight, with the saliva tests acting as a supplementary test in between.”

Enduring a regular test every seven days, combined with testing requirements at certain destinations, has been an intrusive and uncomfortable procedure for cabin crew and other E tū members, Savage says.

“It’s a routine they have endured for the good of all Kiwis and to keep each other, their families, and their communities safe.

“To be able to lessen that imposition on crew, and eventually other border workers, is an incredibly positive step,” he says.

Savage says a “very high percentage” of those who work at the border are now fully vaccinated or on their way to being fully vaccinated.

“High vaccination rates mean the risk of infection is lower, but workers are also less likely to show symptoms if they do become unwell – frequent saliva testing can help in this regard.”

ENDS

For more information and comment:
Savage, 027 590 0074

E tū, the union for aviation workers, invites all Kiwis to join in the remembrance of the crew and passengers in Air New Zealand’s Erebus disaster by observing one-minute’s silence on Saturday.

On 28 November, as there is every year, there will be a wreath-laying ceremony and one-minute silence observed at 1.49pm to remember the crew of Air New Zealand TE901 who died 41 years ago on the slopes of Mt Erebus in Antarctica.

The one-minute silence marks the moment of impact, which occurred at 12.49pm NZST (1.49pm NZ Daylight Saving Time). Twenty crew members and 237 passengers lost their lives in the tragedy.

E tū Organiser Dayna Townsend says the day marks an event that is forever etched into the memory of New Zealanders.

“Today marks a day when our national airline, the nation, and the families of those aboard, suffered a great tragedy.

“The crew memorial gardens near Auckland Airport in Māngere are a focal point for remembrance, and the event is particularly poignant this year, as we consider the upheaval and thousands of job losses for aviation workers as a result of the pandemic.”

On the same day, E tū also remembers the five Kiwi aviation workers who died in 2008, when their Air New Zealand A320 crashed off the coast of Perpignan, France.

Labour MP Marja Lubeck, a former flight attendant, union president, and E tū Head of Aviation, will be attending on behalf of the Government.

Where: Auckland Airport Crew Memorial, Tom Pearce Drive, Māngere

Time: 1.30pm

ENDS

For more information and comment:
Dayna Townsend, 027 590 0070

Aviation union members are “incensed” after hearing the news that a multi-million-dollar share offer has been given to Air New Zealand’s CEO, including offers to the executive team.

On Friday, the New Zealand stock exchange showed CEO Greg Foran issued with rights to around $2.03 million worth of shares.

Six other members of the executive team were also issued rights of a lower value, including former executive Cam Wallace.

With around 4000 of the airline’s workers having already lost their jobs and hundreds of 787 crew set to be made redundant before Christmas, workers have described the airline’s actions as “tone-deaf”.

“I’ve never seen crew so upset as they were over the weekend. It’s just another kick while they’re already down as crew numbers are being decimated,” says one worker.

“This flies in the face of Air New Zealand’s internal programme around rebuilding, which is about supporting from within and looking after staff in order to look after the customer. This is not looking after staff.”

Some crew have found themselves relying on benefits as their incomes have dropped, the worker says.

Another airport worker who prefers to remain anonymous says, “People are losing their jobs. This is completely insensitive.”

E tū Head of Aviation Savage says union members are foregoing pay increases and not collecting contractual performance bonuses to help the airline save money.

“For the board and the executives to take the share options at this time will do nothing to rebuild the airline’s performance. Workers are incensed – it’s rubbing salt into an already painful wound,” he says.

“The announcement will further reinforce the view of union members that the company’s strategy needs a complete overhaul.”

Savage says the union will be taking up the issue of the share offers with Finance Minister Grant Robertson.

“Air New Zealand has drawn down on their government loan and it seems this public money is now being spent on lining the pockets of the senior management.

“The distribution of pay to staff needs to be fair, and the airline needs to retain and create decent jobs. Our national carrier should be something all Kiwis can be proud of, starting with looking after all its employees.”

For more information and comment:
Savage, 027 590 0074

E tū calls on the country’s national carrier to halt outsourcing in the wake of fresh cabin crew redundancy proposals.

On Wednesday, Air New Zealand announced its proposal to make around 385 cabin crew redundant by December, as part of its plans to cut staff numbers further.

However, the company is continuing to outsource work, retaining an agreement with a cabin crew hire company in Shanghai.

An E tū member who wishes to remain anonymous says the redundancy proposal is “devastating” for crew, with the state of the industry wreaking havoc on their ability to earn a living.

“Every time as cabin crew, we think we are going to get a reprieve and get back to doing what we love – we keep getting hit down.

“We’ve already lost 900 mid-to-long haul crew. We want to see Air New Zealand flourish and we want to save New Zealand jobs. Our goal is to see the airline bounce back as quickly as it can, so we can start getting our colleagues back,” they say.

“We constantly ask why the [Shanghai] base is still going, and it is something we will be trying to deal with through this process.”

Another E tū member, also anonymous, says the situation seems like “a rollercoaster ride that doesn’t seem to stop” and will inevitably create issues related to personal and financial wellbeing, particularly for crew that have spent most of their careers at Air New Zealand.

“Crew want to be able to move forward. Some feel this isn’t about the company getting into ‘revive mode’, but rather like a race to the bottom – trying to get crew on minimal salaries using the excuse of COVID-19.”

E tū head of aviation, Savage, says while crew can see the damage COVID-19 has done to the aviation sector, there is no operational reason for Air New Zealand to retain a crew base in Shanghai.

“The Shanghai base has always been about paying crew less and devaluing the role of cabin crew. Outsourcing is a barrier to raising standards in aviation and it needs to end.

“When the work comes back, it needs to come back to Auckland-based cabin crew,” he says.

“For the company to focus on immediate labour costs, without taking into account the bigger picture, is short-sighted and damaging to all aviation workers.”

Savage says the airline and the jobs it provides are a vital piece of New Zealand’s infrastructure.

“The Government’s new approach to procurement – to help create jobs for those most affected by COVID-19 – is something Air New Zealand needs to follow. Creating skilled jobs and training the future generations of airline workers and cabin crew is essential to our economy.”

ENDS

For more information and comment:
Savage, 027 590 0074

E tū wants to see the country’s national airline carrier putting airline workers and their jobs at the centre of the aviation sector’s recovery in the wake of its reported full-year loss.

On Thursday, Air New Zealand announced an after-tax loss of $454 million for the 2020 financial year.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, thousands of workers have been made redundant, been put on furlough, or taken extended leave without pay.

An E tū cabin crew member, who prefers not to be named, says although the company had recently thanked staff and was going through cost-saving measures to protect jobs, it now needed to “put its money where its mouth is” with regards to its people.

“There’s always a fear of redundancy. I don’t think anyone feels comfortable right now or could say with 100% certainty that their job is safe.”

They say the way that the wave of redundancies was handled during the first lockdown has left a “bitter taste” behind.

“It was the speed with which the redundancies happened – the fact that people were isolated and unable to get together and talk about it. There’s a sense that there’s always the chance that [the company] could have saved more jobs.”

E tū’s Head of Aviation Savage says the “heavy-handed way” in which Air New Zealand went about its cost reductions, including its clumsy handling of fare refunds, has damaged its reputation with the public and with employees.

“They are no longer the respected brand they once were, and the approach to cost reduction via mass redundancies is not a sustainable strategy.

“Air New Zealand needs to do far better by its employees and not just always fall back on a blunt measure, like slashing jobs.”

Savage says if the airline can’t rebuild trust and ensure the safety of their staff and the travelling public, then it will struggle to recover.

“Any moves to cut more jobs, or to outsource work – like Qantas has – in order to save money and decrease the wages of working Kiwis, would severely damage its reputation even further,” he says.

“As the country’s national carrier, the airline needs to ensure there are well-paid, decent jobs, and to give workers have a proper say in what’s happening, with their voices leading the recovery.”

ENDS

For more information and comment:
Savage, 027 590 0074