“Wizz Air’s arrival in Luxembourg this summer represents bad news from a social point of view,” the OGBL, LCGB and ALPL syndicates stated, in response to the low-cost airline’s launch in the Grand Duchy this August.
Wizz Air, which aims to run regular flights between Luxembourg and Italy, Romania and North Macedonia (from December 2023), can slash its prices only “at the expense of its employees,” the unions said. In a joint statement, they expressed concerns over the company’s notoriety for its “anti-union and anti-social practices”. The Hungarian airline “will not create jobs, and will not hire employees in the Grand Duchy” and is unlikely to pay social charges and taxes in Luxembourg, according to the statement.
The unions take particular umbrage with the reputation of Wizz Air director Joszef Varadi, who is said to “encourage pilots to work beyond tolerable levels of fatigue”. This notably occurred following the coronavirus pandemic and the consequent rebound of airline passenger levels, which provoked the anger of pilot unions in Europe in 2022. The European Cockpit Association called it a “lax attitude to safety culture” and urged pilots to be wary of fatigue.
In terms of low flight prices, the unions categorically state that “Wizz Air will systematically fly at a loss”, with a pricing policy they consider potentially “socially disastrous for employees in the sector.”
“It is high time we put an end to practices of ‘social dumping’,” the unions concluded.
Further reading: Findel anticipates record 1,000 consumer complaints in 2023
