Icelandair has signed a contract with the Icelandic Pilots Association (FÍA), RÚV reports. The contract will be in effect until September 30, 2025.
Representatives from both parties issued statements about the contract, with Icelandair CEO Bogi Nils Bogason saying that it would ensure more working hours for pilots and “give the company more flexibility to develop Icelandair’s route system.” Chair of FÍA Jón Þór Þorvaldsson stated that the “pilots are proud of having achieved the goals that were set out, which will further increase Icelandair’s competitiveness. The agreement ensures that the company is well-positioned to expand into any market long into the future and take advantage of the opportunities that will undoubtedly arise.”
Icelandair has yet to reach an agreement with cabin crew workers who unanimously rejected Icelandair’s offer earlier this week. The Icelandic Cabin Crew Association’s board said all members were “completely opposed to outright overturning the current wage agreement and sacrificing the terms and rights that have taken decades to build up.” The group’s chairperson, Guðlaug Líney Jóhannsdóttir, noted that cabin crew last received a wage increase in 2018, and the proposed contract did not account for one until 2023 – effectively a five-year wage freeze. The wage hike in 2023 would also be dependent on whether Icelandair makes a profit. Cabin crew would receive a one-time payment of ISK 202,000 ($1,380/€1,270), but this would also depend on the success of Icelandair’s planned public stock offering.
Bogi Nils has come under fire from labour unions VR and ASÍ regarding the current wage dispute. The CEO has baulked at this criticism, saying “We need to be able to control labour costs and this can’t be higher for us than it is for our competitors.”
