Austrian Airlines and Unions Deadlocked in Collective Agreement Dispute Over Wages and Working Conditions

Austrian Airlines (AUA) and its on-board staff, consisting of 3,500 employees, continue to dispute the collective agreement. AUA spokeswoman Sophie Matkovits stated that negotiations are ongoing at various levels but there is no set negotiation date. The union also confirmed that discussions were taking place, but there seems to be no change in the airline’s offering.

After 20 rounds of negotiations, AUA offered flying personnel an increase of 18 percent in the collective agreement. This included an eight percent raise this year and an additional five percent for both 2025 and 2026. Co-pilots were also set to receive up to a ten percent increase. However, the on-board works council and the Vida union were pushing to reduce the salary gap between AUA employees and Lufthansa employees, where workers reportedly earned up to 40 percent more.

Vida Aviation boss Daniel Liebhart expressed disappointment with the management’s offer, stating that while there were some improvements, the extended time frame was not enough to address the underlying issues of underpayment and unequal treatment of Austrian employees within the Lufthansa group. The AUA’s offer was rejected by the union cabin crew with a majority of 90 percent, prompting frustration from AI Austria who accused the Vida union of persuading workers to reject a potentially acceptable agreement for the company.

With no resolution in sight, further strikes loom as longer collectives agreements can cause significant damage to Austrian Airlines.