Garuda pilots threaten to strike again
Garuda pilots threaten to strike again
Arya Abhiseka, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Once again, Garuda Indonesia assured the public that it would
operate as normal next week, despite a new strike threat made by
its pilots after both sides failed to reach an agreement on a pay
dispute.
The pilots have threatened to go on strike next Tuesday and
vowed to continue the action until the airline's management bowed
to their demand for a pay hike.
Garuda vice president of commercial affairs Bachrul Hakim
said, on the sidelines of a hearing with House of Representatives
Commission IV for transportation, that the management had armed
itself with a contingency plan to prevent any disruption caused
by a possible strike.
However, he declined to reveal the details.
"We would like to assure the public that the strike threat
will not disrupt any of Garuda's flights," he said.
Previously, the management signaled that Garuda would recruit
foreign pilots from other airlines, if necessary.
The move appears inevitable, given that the airline owns
several Boeing 747-400 and 747-200 aircraft, and that there are
not enough local pilots qualified to fly wide-bodied airplanes,
including Boeing 747s.
The management also said the strike plan was supported by only
about 20 of Garuda's 686 pilots.
Fears of possible disruption of traffic on the 21 domestic and
25 international routes served by the airline resurfaced after
both parties left the negotiating table several days ago without
any compromise being reached.
President of the Garuda Pilots Association Ari Sapari said on
Thursday his pilots had been left with no other option but to
strike.
"We have been in talks with the Ministry of Manpower and
Transmigration and the airline's management, but have still been
unable to agree on substantive issues. We shall claim our right
to take industrial action and go on strike," he said.
The pilots, who complained that their salaries were lower than
the international average, initially planned to take industrial
action late last month.
However, after being asked by Minister of Manpower and
Transmigration Jacob Nuwa Wea, who guaranteed to mediate in the
negotiations, the pilots delayed their industrial action.
Garuda's management said that the pilots were currently paid
Rp 7.9 million (US$887.6) to Rp 22.8 million per month. The
pilots demanded Rp 47.1 million to Rp 88.8 million, while the
management offered only Rp 13 million to Rp 24.6 million.
The management said that in order to meet the pilots' demands,
the company would need to raise its salary budget to Rp 500
billion per year.
Last year, Garuda Indonesia recorded Rp 417 billion in profit,
despite having just recovered from the financial crisis.
Currently, it still has $880 million in total debt, payable from
2003 through 2010.
Garuda, which has a 53-plane fleet and 9,450 employees,
carried 7.3 million passengers, or about 40 percent of the
nation's air travelers in 2002.