Iberia reaches agreement with cabin crew over working conditions

Iberia’s management and labor representatives of the airline´s 3,800-strong cabin crew met Tuesday to hammer out the final details of an agreement to introduce greater flexibility in working conditions and a new economic deal, sources close to the negotiation said. The pact with Iberia cabin crew comes 12 days after the airline reached a “landmark” productivity agreement with the pilot’s union Sepla, bringing an end to years of conflict between staff and management played out against a backdrop of five consecutive years of losses.

The agreement includes a salary freeze until 2015 – following a 14-percent reduction last year – and the linking of wage hikes to the profitability of Iberia. IAG, the holding company that controls Iberia and British Airways, is set to announce its annual results next Friday and Luis Gallego, the chief executive of Iberia, wants to draw a line under the labor disputes before then. Still outstanding is an agreement with the airline’s ground crew, which comprises 8,000 personnel.

The accord reached with cabin crew establishes a 90-hour monthly limit on flight hours and introduces new responsibilities for short- and medium-haul flights, such as accompanying passengers to the plane and moving equipment between connecting flights.