THY to implement verdict against scabs

ISTANBUL

After Hava-İş filed a lawsuit, the court determined that THY had hired new staff and ordered it to cease working with them. THY says it will implement the decision. AA photo

A Turkish court has ordered Turkish Airlines (THY) to cease working with strikebreakers that were hired after labor unrest hit the carrier again in May in response to earlier firings of unionized employees in 2012. THY Chairman Hamdi Topçu has reportedly said the flagship carrier will implement the decision.

THY employees went on strike on May 15 in a dispute over pay and the reinstatement of sacked workers, but the company said its operations were continuing as planned with planes leaving on time. Airline workers’ union Hava-İş, however, said the company hired new staff and flight crew to prevent any slowdown in flights.

The court determined that THY had indeed hired new staff, ordering it to cease working with the new personnel, Airporthaber reported July 23.

“It isn’t a situation that will cause problems. We will implement the court decision,” said Topçu, the report said.

Hava-İş, which represents 14,000 of the airline’s 15,800 workers, repeatedly met with company officials over the collective bargaining agreement and the reinstatement of 305 workers who were laid off after participating in labor action to protest against a piece of draft legislation banning strikes and lockouts in the aviation industry, but the airline rejected the syndicate’s demands.

THY invited the union to sign the 24th Collective Bargaining Agreement until May 22, otherwise the company made a reasonable raise in the THY workers’ fee on the basis of the 23rd Collective Bargaining Agreement, by a written statement on May 18. The union representatives, then, announced that they had found the company’s written statement “disrespectful” both to the THY workers and the legal status of the union.