Ben Gurion Airport employees declare peak season strike
Starting Thursday morning, employees will operate under emergency procedures with a reduced number of staff members. Heavy delays are expected both with arrivals and departures.
By Irit Rosenblum Tags: Israel newsThe Israel Airports Authority employees union has declared a general strike beginning Thursday morning at 6 A.M., as part of a dispute over pension funds.
Employees will operate under emergency procedures, with a reduced number of staff members. Heavy delays are expected both with arrivals and departures. The union's board will convene on Saturday night to determine its next steps.
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Planes lining up for take off at Ben-Gurion Airport, April 2010. |
| Photo by: Moti Milrod |
The employees threatened to take such action about two weeks ago. The union contends that the IAA is dragging its feet in negotiations over the establishment of a fund to safeguard workers' pensions. Airport employees say the workers' committee and the Histadrut labor federation have approached the IAA on this issue several times over the past two years, but no progress has been made.
Peak travel season is currently underway, as thousands of citizens head abroad to take advantage of the end of summer and the month of Jewish holidays in September. Travelers have reported that the airport is packed around the clock.
Committee chairman Pinhas Idan said the stalling by IAA management endangers the workers' pensions.
The airport staff is demanding an immediate resolution of the issue, saying that pension assets should not be directed to any use other than paying pension benefits.
The IAA spokesman said in response: "Negotiations are taking place on an ongoing and serious basis."
Moreover, he noted, the IAA's board decided three years ago already that pension monies would not be used for any other purpose.
"Management will do everything it can to avoid disruption to the service provided to travelers," the spokesman added.
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at least they are doing it on Rosh Hashana proper, so they won't be going into work on some of the holiest days of the year.
No spoiled workers, no strike. Create jobs for people who really want to work. Those who strike should be blacklisted from the workforce and stripped of citizenship. What a communist sham.
MM Seem we spreading the Strike Fever pass our borders
Pesky unions. The bane of all democracies.
The 'committee' chooses carefully the days of strike, not to damage their friends from El-Al committee not flying on these days! It is high time that all the foreign airlines put their lawyers together and sue the airport workers committee for all the damages, theirs and of their passengers. They have all they need for a civil sue of millions to be paid by the airport workers. They can prove that this is not a really legitimate working conflict! Is someone able to show us the pay slips of the people on the workers committee? Maybe there is really a problem, maybe we have to help them!
Just fire all the employee and all perks, pensions, etc are also lossed to them. No emplyment by any Public 'Authority whatsoever in future. The State has to show finally that it exists! I did ask the very same for the striking teachers.
It is high time to privatize these services, to get out the international airport from the hands of these blackmailing, expensive and inefficient people!
It doesn't matter for them that Ben Gurion Airport was downgraded under the level of a Nigerian airport, these inefficient and expensive people have the guts to blackmail the Israeli population in order to receive more and more benefits. Please, be so kind and make public their actual pension arrangements and their requirements, so everyone will be able to judge the legitimacy of the strike! The time for privatization has come!
I am paying income tax, airport tax and other taxes financing the salaries of these peoples. They are taking my money but refuse to provide the services. For me, this is stealing! Only when we will sue them for all the damages they cause, when they will have to pay millions in compensations to passengers and to airlines, from the 'committee' till the last worker, they will learn that they are not above the law!
G-d works in mysterious ways. Its Rosh Hashana - they need to be in shul anyway.
Lol! It is not some mysterious way! The 'committee' chooses carefully the days of strike, not to damage their friends from El-Al committee!
No blackmail ! Fire them all
fire them all,no more blackmail