Scandinavian Airlines Sverige gives notice of lockout

On May 14, 2007, the Swedish Salaried Employees’ Union/Scandinavian Cabin Crew Association, the trade union for Scandinavian Airlines Sverige’s cabin crew personnel, issued notice of industrial action to take effect from the morning of May 25. This notice encompasses Scandinavian Airlines Sverige’s flights manned by cabin crew employed in Sweden. SAS’s flights to and from the US and Asia, and Scandinavian Airlines Danmark’s and Scandinavian Airlines Norge’s flights are not affected by this notice.

Mediation led by the Swedish National Mediation Office commenced on Wednesday. At the same time, the Air Transport Industry Employers’ Association/Scandinavian Airlines Sverige gave notice of their intention to call a lockout. This means that cabin crew personnel who are members of the Salaried Employees’ Union and who are encompassed by this notice will be subject to a lockout beginning on May 28. No other SAS employees who are members of the Salaried Employees’ Union will be involved in this lockout and will work as normal.

“We apologize to our customers for the uncertainty caused by the strike notice issued by the Salaried Employees’ Union. SAS has offered its cabin personnel a three-year agreement on a level with the rest of the market, but this offer has been met with counter-demands corresponding to a slightly more than 25-percent increase in costs per year. We are now focusing on assisting the members in their work to avoid industrial action,” says Anders Ehrling, CEO, Scandinavian Airlines Sverige.

“The lockout indicates how seriously we view this situation. We expect that it will expedite a swift resolution to the conflict,” concludes Anders Ehrling.

Anders Ehrling, CEO, Scandinavian Airlines Sverige, +46 709 97 19 37
Press Office, Scandinavian Airlines Sverige, +46 8 797 33 30
Brief facts about Scandinavian Airlines Sverige, a subsidiary within the SAS Group:
Passengers per year: About 6 million
Aircraft: 42
Employees: 2,500
Take-offs/landings: 300 per day
Destinations: 51, from and within Sweden.
Scandinavian Airlines is the airline that sells most low-price tickets in Sweden.