Easter airport strike lifted

State union workers will hold round table discussions with the government

According to Labor Ministry sources, an airport strike planned for April 5 — a day before the start of the Easter long weekend — has been canceled following a meeting with Secretary of State Employment Ana Castellani and representatives from the Labor and Transport Ministry.

The 24-hour strike had been called by the Association of Unionized State Workers (ATE) from the Argentine Civil Air Navigation Administration (ANAC) on Monday. It would have affected all 55 of Argentina’s airports, severely affecting Easter travel plans.

State representatives and ATE-ANAC have decided to hold round table discussions to talk through their differences, according to sources.

The ATE-ANAC is demanding an additional 20% salary increase to the 97% raise negotiated in the collective bargaining agreement reached for ATE. In February, Argentina’s year-on-year inflation rate reached 102.5%

In their press release announcing the strike, ATE-ANAC mentioned other “unsolved issues” discussed in previous binding arbitration. 

“The lack of staff and repair work on ‘Follow Me’ vehicles are conspicuous in their absence,” it said, referring to cars that guide taxiing airplanes and transfer aviation equipment. 

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