AUA strike decided

52,000 passengers affected, what to do now

(Bild: dpa, APA, krone.at-Grafik)

Many air travelers are in for a shock: in the middle of the busy Easter travel season, AUA's on-board staff have decided to go on strike for 36 hours. No fewer than 420 flights and 52,000 passengers are affected - they need to know this now:

The dispute over the collective agreement at AUA and the on-board staff has recently come to a head. A decision was made to strike from midnight on Maundy Thursday until midday on Good Friday. This was announced by union representative Daniel Liebhart on Saturday. Whether the strike can still be averted seems questionable, but is possible. The employees are demanding a new offer, but AUA could even withdraw its offer.

Several options for passengers
Flight cancellations, such as those threatened by the AUA due to the possible strike on Thursday and Friday, are cancellations. According to the Agency for Passenger and Transport Rights (apf), passengers then have the choice between a refund of the ticket price, a return flight to the first point of departure at the earliest possible time or alternative transportation to the destination under comparable conditions at the earliest possible time. Monetary compensation is also possible.

For travelers, the chaos seems perfect - they should now actively try to get to their destination after all.

(Bild: APA/EVA MANHART)

Actively contact the airline
Alternative transportation to the destination under comparable conditions at a later date would also be possible at the passenger's request, subject to available seats. On its website, apf recommends that affected passengers who are not proactively offered alternative transportation should contact the airline as a first step before making their own bookings. This way, the airline is sure to have the contact details and can provide better information.

If you do have to organize and pay for alternative transport yourself, apf recommends keeping invoices and receipts and keeping the costs as low as possible. This also applies if an overnight stay is necessary.

Trigger of the labor dispute

The employee representatives broke off negotiations on Thursday evening and are demanding a new offer from the airline. According to the union, the current offer only covers inflation and there is no real wage increase. The current salary structure is significantly lower than that of the German parent company Lufthansa.

Passengers could be entitled to compensation
The possible strike for passengers and AUA is now known days in advance. When asked on Ö1's "Mittagsjournal" on Saturday whether it could be assumed that Austrian would now be able to cope with everything, Robert Kogler from apf said: "It's a bit difficult for us to judge." The AUA should be contacted. If you don't hear anything for six weeks or are not satisfied with what you hear, then you should contact the apf.

Regardless of which of the above-mentioned options you choose as a passenger affected by a cancellation, you may also be entitled to a compensation payment, says Kogler. This amounts to 250 to 600 euros per flight and per person. In principle, the airline is responsible for taking care of the passengers if there are cancellations.

AUA is already trying to rebook
The airline said on Saturday that it is now trying to reach all those affected and rebook them if possible. However, as Lufthansa is already very well booked overall during the busy travel period and therefore only a few remaining seats are available, this will be a difficult undertaking.