Extra staff and better pay may have solved Schiphol’s problems in security, but those in baggage handling have only gotten worse. The result? A new round of strikes, hoera!
The stars of this season of Schiphol Drama (our favourite reality TV show!): Baggage handlers, passenger handlers, and platform staff. 🌟
As AD reports, their strikes will be taking place under the slogan, “wages up, work pressure down” — and workers are planning a “wild action” at Schiphol Airport.
Messy business
Many are not happy to hear the news of an upcoming strike, especially in light of the upcoming Meivakantie (May vacation) on April 29.
READ MORE | Travelling from Schiphol? Book your time slot (and follow the dress code!)
“It’s very messy in the baggage basements and on the platforms,” an anonymous baggage officer tells AD.
“A date had already been set for a wild action. But Schiphol and the handling companies got wind of that. They threatened that salaries will not be paid, and even with dismissals. So, we postponed it.”
When exactly the new strike will take place, has not yet been announced.
Copycat strike action
In 2022, on the first Saturday of the May vacation, KLM’s baggage handlers spontaneously decided to put down their work. And their strike had its desired outcome: more staff was hired, and the working conditions at KLM improved.
The five other handling companies working at Schiphol, however, did not follow suit with similar measures — a decision that their staff has not forgotten.
Within these companies, low wages and moderate working conditions remain an issue and are creating a structural deficit of hundreds of workers.
While pressure on airlines and handling companies is increasing, they are unable to pay higher salaries. This is due to tight budgets and enormous losses during the pandemic, they announced in the autumn of last year.
READ MORE | Chaos at Schiphol: why the biggest Dutch airport is struggling so much
I am not surprised to see #schiphol #Amsterdam drop for the World’s Top 100 #Airports 2023. For decades it dominated the top 10 of this list. Dramatical security waiting times and poor baggage handling resulted in this qualification by @SKYTRAX https://t.co/Gl5c5bu6RI pic.twitter.com/5wn4jUahF4
— Robbrecht Amerongen (@robbrecht) April 6, 2023
Labour unions cannot take action either. Last year, they signed a “peace agreement” with Schiphol Airport.
“We also made financial agreements at that time,” FMV Aviation director Jaap de Bie tells AD, “but they were never applied.” Therefore, the Schiphol Agreement is now under great pressure.
What does Schiphol say?
The airport’s hands and feet are bound, according to a spokesperson.
While Schiphol itself was directly involved in the security staff problems as a client, it now merely stands on the sideline. The clients of handling companies, after all, are the airlines, not the airport.
Despite attempts to persuade handling companies and airlines to go through with the previously agreed upon CAO wage increase, and even offering them a loan to do so, “it has not been addressed.”
“The ball is in their court,” the Schiphol spokesperson tells AD.
Pointing fingers
So, while all involved parties are looking to each other for a solution, the chaos behind the scenes of the Netherlands’ busiest airport continues to unfold.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if the unrest comes to the surface in the coming weeks,” says union leader De Bie. Oh jeetje. 😳
In that case, us passengers will once again be the ones bearing the burden.
Are you planning on flying from Schiphol this May? Tell us in the comments!
Maybe ‘us passengers’ should be knocking on some doors of the airlines and handling agencies, instead of complaining about people wanting to be treated like human beings.