KLM ground crew strike at Schiphol today: 119 flights canceled, 70 delayed

KLM ground crew workers are striking at Schiphol Airport again today, protesting for a better collective bargaining agreement. KLM canceled 119 flights and delayed another 70 due to the strike. Schiphol warned travelers to check the status of their flight before leaving for the airport.

The strike, organized by the trade unions FNV and CNV, will take place from 6:00 a.m. to noon. The unions have been negotiating a new collective bargaining agreement for ground crew workers - the people who assist passengers, load and unload baggage, and taxi planes to the correct position - for months. They demand that KLM give the ground crew salary increases that at least compensate for inflation.

CNV and FNV rejected an offer by KLM that three other unions accepted. According to the unions, the offer ignored their baseline demand - to protect ground crew workers’ purchasing power - and again shows the disparity in how KLM treats its workers at different levels. KLM increased pilots’ and management’s remuneration without a fight, the unions said.

This is the third strike by KLM ground crew workers, each lasting two hours longer than the one before. In the previous two, KLM canceled 100 flights each time, affecting 27,000 passengers.

CNV and FNV previously said they regret inconveniencing travelers, but that is inherent in a strike. “Pilots are getting extra benefits at the expense of ground staff. We won’t be brushed aside,” John van Dorland of FNV said. “We feel very sorry for the passengers, but management leaves us no choice but to strike.”

According to CNV negotiator Souleiman Amallah, the ground crew workers are “really very angry” and feel that KLM management is treating them unfairly. “The willingness to strike is strong and grows by the day,” he said.

If this strike does not lead to a deal, the unions will hold another one next Wednesday. This one will last eight hours.