2018-10-27 10:13 update: 2018-10-28, 15:23
Photo PAP/Jakub Kamiński
Cabin crew and pilots of Polish national flag carrier PLL LOT have suspended their strike action until 1400 on Monday, LOT management and unionists announced on Saturday. The strike started last Thursday and caused the cancellation of sevaral dozen flights.
The two sides to the dispute will meet on Monday at 0800 to continue negotiations, which started at 1900 on Friday.
"The parties have established a suspension of the strike until Monday at 1400 with a view to reaching an agreement," negotiator Piotr Wujec announced, reading a joint statement by PLL LOT and the Cross-Union Strike Committee. "The parties will meet on Monday morning at 0800 at LOT headquarters with the aim of continuing negotiations."
On behalf of the airline, talks were conducted among others with Bartosz Piechota, temporarily delegated from the LOT Supervisory Board. The meeting lasted more than eight hours with breaks, and the joint statement was issued at 0230 Saturday.
Despite the suspension of industrial action, LOT cancelled seven flights on Saturday, out of a timetable of over 300 planned connections. The cause of the cancellations was lack of sufficient crew members.
As part of the strike, which has been ongoing since October 18, cabin crew and pilots have failed to report for work. Every day they have gathered outside LOT headquarters in Warsaw demanding the reinstatement of union leader Monika Żelazik, who was dismissed for disciplinary reasons, and the reinstatement of 67 staff members fired by LOT CEO Rafał Milczarski on Monday. They also demand the dismissal of the LOT CEO.
PLL LOT maintains that the strike is illegal. (PAP)
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