Corporate travel planners received welcome news on Monday when the Syndicat National des Pilotes de Ligne (SNPL) suspended a 48-hour strike that was due to ground easyJet flights across France on 13–14 September. The union said management had finally tabled "concrete proposals" to tackle chronic roster instability – the core grievance behind the action – and therefore moved the walk-out to 24–25 September to allow negotiations to continue. Had the strike gone ahead this week, up to 25 % of easyJet’s French schedule – including lucrative business shuttles between Paris-Orly, Toulouse and Nice – would have been cancelled, forcing thousands of travellers onto rival carriers or rail. The postponement spared companies last-minute re-ticketing costs and preserved seat capacity during Paris Fashion Week build-up, traditionally one of the busiest periods for inbound buyers. Behind the scenes, the airline has offered to cap the number of short-notice duty changes and to introduce a bonus for pilots accepting ‘rescue duties’. SNPL wants those concessions embedded in a legally binding agreement before it calls off September’s new strike dates. Mobility managers should therefore keep alternative routings in place and monitor updates via easyJet’s operational bulletins. Travellers booked on the original strike dates can re-use tickets until 30 November without change fees, but only once. Companies with critical meetings near the revised 24–25 September window may wish to re-route via Air France or the train to guarantee arrival.
Source: Business Travel News Europe
