A strike which would have paralysed Finnair services over the next week has been cancelled after the airline struck a deal with two of its unions.
The industrial action had been due to start today and then run on alternate days until November 23. Finnair had already cancelled some services in anticipation of the strike.
But the industrial action has now been cancelled after the airline agreed a new collective labour agreement with two unions representing cabin crew and support staff.
Finnair said in a statement: "The foreseen strikes are therefore cancelled and Finnair’s traffic will return to normal within a few days."
CEO Pekka Vauramo added: "Avoiding the strikes in the final stages of negotiations is excellent news for our customers, although it is very unfortunate that the strike threats and the flight cancellations caused by the threats have caused uncertainty and harm to our passengers.
"It is good that we at Finnair, together with labour unions, are now proceeding with negotiations on the cost savings that are so important for our airline's future. In our industry, employment and growth require clear improvements in productivity."
Despite the strike being called off, Finnair said that 130 cancelled flights would still not operate and added that 10,000 passengers had been affected through their journeys being rerouted, resheduled or refunded.
Rob Gill
