Finnair technical personnel strike may lead to some flight cancellations

In the latest example of the poor working atmosphere at Finnair (OMH: FIA1S), the technical personnel backed by the clerical employees’ trade union Pro have started a strike that is set to continue for one week. The strike covers all service and maintenance work needed at Helsinki-Vantaa airport. The union says that it is disappointed with the (majority owner) Finnish government, which should not trust the numbers presented by the company and should instead focus on social and human values.

Finnair has co-determination negotiations ongoing and they are set to last for precisely the said one more week. Union feels that Finnair’s severance package offerings and other support simply isn’t enough. The company believes it will be able to fly most flights by handling daily maintenance abroad but says that some cancellations should be expected and is once again very sorry for the harm done to customers. At the moment it is hard to estimate the economic effect on the company from the latest strike.

In an unrelated matter, the company said last week that the planned sale of Finnair catering functions to LSG Sky Chefs is off since the Board of Lufthansa rejected the move due to an investment halt. Finnair will now focus on improving profitability of the said functions and continue to evaluate alternative options.