Austrian Airlines faces ongoing collective agreement dispute and potential strikes, as negotiations fail to bring resolution and improve staff pay

The ongoing collective agreement dispute involving 3,500 on-board staff at Austrian Airlines showed no signs of resolution on Thursday. While discussions were taking place at various levels, there was no set negotiation date. The union confirmed that talks were underway, but there seemed to be no change in the airline’s offering.

After 20 rounds of negotiations, Austrian Airlines was offering flying personnel, including approximately 900 pilots, an increase of 18 percent in the collective agreement. This included an eight percent raise this year and an additional five percent for both 2025 and 2026. Co-pilots were also set to receive up to a ten percent increase. However, the on-board works council and the Vida union were pushing to reduce the salary gap between AUA employees and the parent company Lufthansa, where employees reportedly earned up to 40 percent more.

Vida Aviation boss Daniel Liebhart expressed disappointment with the management’s offer, stating that while there were some improvements, the extended time frame was not enough to address the underlying issues of underpayment and unequal treatment of Austrian employees within the Lufthansa group. The AUA’s offer was rejected by the union cabin crew with a majority of 90 percent, prompting frustration from the aviation umbrella organization AI Austria, who accused the Vida union of persuading workers to reject a potentially acceptable agreement for the company.

With no resolution in sight and potential further strikes looming as the longer collective agreement dispute continues, it seems that Austrian Airlines may face significant damage in terms of employee morale and financial stability.