With the pilots’ strike well into its stride but nonetheless allowing the airline to move at around 73% capacity, TAP Air Portugal’s pilots union SPAC has announced it is “preparing new measures” to demonstrate its members’ discontent.
Once the May 10 strike deadline is reached, these new measures are likely to kick in, though for now they are being kept under wraps.
SPAC has simply informed newspapers that they will “be announced when the time is right”.,
Meantime, the government – this time through minister for Foreign Affairs Rui Machete – has appealed to pilots’ “good sense”, stressing that this far the “strike has not been successful from the unions’ point of view”.
It is true, the strike has not prompted any kind of change of heart from the government which says it has reached the end of negotiations.
Pilots claim the government assured them of a 10-20 per cent share in TAP capital in any privatisation deal, plus further concessions over seniority bonuses.
Meantime, the May 10 deadline falls days before companies interested in investing in TAP’s privatisation are due to present binding offers.
