Air Mechanics Cancel Strike - The Air Mechanics' Union cancelled today's strike to avoid parliamentary action against them

The Air Mechanics' Union cancelled today's strike to avoid parliamentary action against them

The Air Mechanics’ Union have cancelled today’s strike, reports DV.

“We don’t want [parliament] to make laws against us striking,” said Maríus Sigurjónsson, the chairperson of the Air Mechanics’ Union negotiations team.

As reported, an emergency meeting of parliament was called yesterday in an attempt to declare the air mechanics’ current work stoppages and strikes illegal.

Once the strike was cancelled however, Interior Minister Hanna Birna Kristjánsdóttir – who celebrated the union’s decision – recommended abandoning the proposal to implement laws making the mechanics strike illegal.

Maríus has called parliament’s actions against their now-cancelled strike “equivalent to government pressure”, and the union have pledged to take the matter to court.

“We consider this the equivalent of pressuring actions on behalf of the government,” Maríus said. “This is a very bad development for collective bargaining agreements, or for collective bargaining negotiations in general on the open market, if it is possible to toss out one group after another. It effectively makes it impossible to reach an agreement on the open market.”