Tigerair faces disruptions as pilots seek parity

Tigerair Australia passengers could face delays and flight disruptions this weekend after pilots at the low-cost airline gave notice protected industrial action will start on Friday unless a deal can be reached in negotiations being held today and Wednesday. The industrial action will include pilots not performing any duties not prescribed on their originally published roster, not accepting duty call outs on rostered days off or annual leave days, and refusal to fly aircraft with any permissible un-serviceability as described in the Minimum Equipment List. Read: Merren McArthur to head up Tigerair Australia. VIPA, which represents Tigerair pilots, said the decision to take action is not one the pilots have taken lightly. “After more than 12 months of negotiations, we’re disappointed that the pilots have had to take industrial action to ensure they have comparable employment conditions to flying for all other major airlines in Australia,” VIPA President John Lyons said in a statement. “But the Tigerair pilots we represent in these negotiations voted overwhelmingly to take these actions to send a clear message to the business that they are seeking significant improvements in what is being offered to them to bring their next enterprise agreement in line with basic industry standards, both in terms of pay and work-life balance. “Tigerair pilots are simply looking for a fair deal." The union says that the pilots’ conditions, including a reduced number of days off and restrictions on access to rostering lifestyle benefits, is well below their peers in other Australian airlines. Tigerair, which operates daily flights from Perth to Sydney and Melbourne, said it was currently negotiating a new enterprise agreement for pilots with the Australian Federation of Air Pilots and VIPA. "Tigerair has plans in place to minimize any disruption to our customers including re-accommodation onto other Tigerair and Virgin Australia services,'' a spokeswoman said. "We will notify customers as soon as possible via SMS/email if there is any disruption. "Customers are advised to please plan to arrive for flights as scheduled unless otherwise notified by the airline directly." The airline said it was important that customers provide it with the correct details so it can contact them if needed.