Although travelling is back on track. However, the impact that the currently ongoing Covid-19 has left on the aviation industry is still there. Whether it’s the prices for private jets for sale or the future of the worker force, nothing is stable.
A recent report from the European Transport Workers’ Federation (ETF) highlights the impact of the ongoing pandemic’s impact on the aviation industry’s worker force. In this post, we’re going to provide you with an insight into the ongoing issues that the aviation industry is going through as per this report and what measures they’re taking to overcome it.
Read on to know more!
Background
It’s no secret that 2020 has been one of the toughest years for the aviation industry. With almost no flight operations taking place for most of the year other than a few cargo flights. The aviation industry has seen complete drought having most of the planes on the ground. This has led to massive financial damage that the industry had to bear. Ultimately, tons of people had to lose their jobs.
Current Situation
Because of the financial crisis that the aviation industry was going through, most governments gave a fiscal stimulus to their relevant aviation sectors to overcome the crisis. This led to somewhat stability in the aviation sector. Thus, different aviation companies as well as airlines were able to survive.
However, the problems that the common worker force of the industry is facing still exists. Because of this reason, the EFT is doing its part to highlight the issues that the cabin crew, pilots, ground staff and air traffic management workers are facing.
As per a recent survey by the ETF, 58.5% of the workers who used to work in the airports are out of work. They’re either on furlough or have lost their jobs. Another survey revealed that 191,000 European workers have lost their job. However, the number of part-time workers is still unclear. But as per estimates, almost a quarter of a million are without a job in the aviation industry.
Air Crew
Aircrew includes the workers who are working on the flight. They include the pilots, passenger attendants and the technical staff that is present in the cabin.
Even though €32.11 billion was given to European airlines in 2020 and they are going to recieve more in 2021, still, the aircrew is under pressure. The airlines continue to lay off staff as the number of flights becomes low. This, in turn, leads to the risk of more people losing their jobs. Because of such practices, the aircrew workers are without any job or social security. However, the EU is taking these conditions into account and is working hard to come up with a solution that will provide relief to these employees.
Ground Staff
The ground staff are the backbone of the aviation industry that ensures that everything is taking place in the correct order. Despite the crucial role they play within the aviation industry, authorities easily ignore and overlook them. Being a vital part of the airport’s infrastructure, no airport can work without the ground staff. Still, they completely forget about them when it came to relief and recovery.
The EU introduced the SURE mechanism and an upcoming relief and recovery facility to cater to the needs of airport staff even those who are on furlough or on other work-schemes.
Air Traffic Management
Like every other sector of the aviation industry, air traffic management too hasn’t escaped the effects of the ongoing pandemic. Despite the pandemic, the work of ATM staff didn’t stop during the pandemic. Because the cargo, medical and humanitarian flights were still going on. Regardless of their crucial role in the aviation industry, undermining their work conditions was still going on.
However, to deal with such issues the EUROCONTROL gave relief of ATM charges to the airlines who were unable to pay for their airspace usage charges. Moreover, as ANSPs have to provide service at every cost because of their critical job, they have to be compensated properly by their respective governments.
Final Words
To sum it all up, despite the ongoing flight operations, the aftershocks of the Covid-19’s impact on the aviation industry will take some time to fully disappear. However, in the meantime, it is the duty of governments to help their respective aviation industries in overcoming this crisis. A good example is already set by the government of the UAE. It has provided a stimulus to different aviation companies in UAE to survive through these tough times.
