Just a few hours after the disruptions caused by a wildcat strike by temporary workers at Ben Gurion Airport came to an end, passengers are again experiencing disruptions caused by a shortage of personnel at QAS, a company that provides outsourcing ground services to various airlines. 10 flights by airlines having agreements with QAS were delayed because the company's employees were in Eilat for training, while the company apparently did not arrange for backup.
The Israel Airports Authority said that there was no connection with the previous delay, and that the company's representatives were on their way back to Ben Gurion Airport in order to reinforce its staff.
The delays amounted to two hours or more each. Delays were listed on the Airports Authority's website for. For example, an easyJet flight to Geneva scheduled to take off at 1:00 PM has not yet taken off. An easyJet flight to Basel scheduled to take off at 00:15 PM was delayed for 3.5 hours. An Arkia Airlines Ltd. flight to Zanzibar scheduled to take off at 2:25 PM will take off at 6:00 PM, and so on.
Note that the Aviation Services Law, which sets compensation for delayed flights, does not apply in cases of sanctions or disruptions not related to the airline, and in any case grants compensation only in case of a delay of eight hours or more, in which case the flight is considered canceled. European airlines like easyJet are subject to the European directive, according to which passengers are entitled to compensation for any delay of over three hours, but in cases in which the airline has no control over the reason for the delay (strikes, security events, etc.), passengers are not entitled to compensation.
Disruptions because of layoffs of temporary workers
The Ben Gurion Airport workers' committee unexpectedly began sanctions yesterday, causing flight disruptions - delays in takeoffs and prolonged waiting in reception for passengers landing at the airport. Passengers also complained about lengthy waits on planes that had already landed.
The workers' protests followed letters summoning 250 temporary employees hired during the summer, when the load at Ben Gurion Airport is heavier than during other seasons, to a pre-layoff hearing. With the arrival of the winter season, the employment of these workers is terminated every year.
It has now been learned that the morning shift that began working at 7:30 AM managed to closed the gaps created and end the lengthy waiting by passengers waiting to be processed after landing.
The Airports Authority said that the workers involved were seasonal personnel hired for the summer, that this is done every year, and certainly now that passenger traffic is growing every year. Letters were sent summoning these workers to a pre-layoff hearing, and the employees conducted sanctions before the hearings took place.
Yesterday's disruptions of flights caused delays in takeoffs, but all flights took off before flights were shut down for the night.
Published by Globes [online], Israel Business News - www.globes-online.com - on October 16, 2017
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