Charleroi-based Ryanair pilots to strike on 14 & 15 August

For the third time this summer, Ryanair pilots operating from Brussels South Charleroi Airport are to go on strike. The low-cost airline is still refusing to respond to pilots demands, according to unions.

This new action on Monday 14 August and Tuesday 15 August follows two previous strikes on weekends in mid-July and end-July.

The list of cancelled flights is due to be published shortly. There's a risk of major disruption as 15 August is a public holiday at the end of an extended weekend. 

For pilots, the main issues of contention remain their demands for higher wages following pandemic-related cutbacks and concern over their rest periods.

Before filing the strike notice, unions sent a letter to Ryanair CEO Eddie Wilson asking to resume negotiations, reports RTBF.

"Ryanair refuses the automatic indexation of salaries in Belgium, but they are not the ones who make the laws in this country," said Didier Lebbe, the permanent secretary of the CNE union. "It’s time for an authority, federal or regional, to bring this company to heel."

According to CNE, Ryanair will only negotiate if the complaints lodged by the unions are withdrawn, "which is impossible since the investigations have already been launched."

The company continues to change pilots' hours and rest times, said the union, which goes against a collective labour agreement expiring in October 2024. The strike notice runs until this date.

As with the two previous actions, the planned strike only affects flights at Charleroi airport as Ryanair aircraft are no longer based at Brussels national airport at Zaventem.