KLM no longer giving pilots free flights to work

KLM pilots who live abroad will no longer be able to fly to work at Schiphol for free. Instead, they will pay a fixed amount for commuting every month, NOS reports based on the provisional collective labor agreement between KLM and trade union VNV. Just under 3 percent of KLM staff currently use the free flights to work scheme.

The state agent - an independent supervisor who monitored whether KLM complied with the conditions for the state aid it received in the coronavirus - previously criticized the regulation, saying that it encourages tax avoidance. KLM pilots who live in Spain or Ireland, for example, pay relatively little income tax, partly because they can travel to work at Schiphol for free, according to NOS.

According to KLM, such compensation is quite common in aviation because it is a very international industry and airlines often recruit abroad.

The preliminary collective bargaining agreement also gives pilots a 4 percent pay increase, as was previously agreed for ground staff. They’ll receive the increase in 2 percent increments.