The airlines have agreed on a further 17% increase to turn off the long weekend disruptions

The aeronautical unions have agreed with the leadership of Aerolineas Argentinas a retroactive increase of 17%which seeks to disable the possibility of a new protest such as the one carried out by the Airline Pilots Association (APLA) this Monday.

The agreement provides for a salary increase of 8% in July and another 8% in August, and can be calculated with the wage parity in effect since the end of last year. The sum of these increases and the new retroactive adjustment, according to company sources, amounts to a salary increase of 68% for the period October 2021-September 2022.

On Monday, after an assembly at Aeroparque that caused cancellations and delays of 60 Aerolineas flights, APLA chief Pablo Biró said pilots’ salaries were “20% below the CPI”.

The agreement that is signed this Thursday is just below the claim of the pilots and it covers aviation unions that negotiate with airlines: In addition to the APLA, it will be signed by APA (ground crew), UPSA (senior personnel) and AAA (cabin crew).

“What has been agreed with this retroactive increase is a total increase 68.1% for the 12 months between October of last year and the following September“sources said at the state airline.” Inflation forecast for that period reaches 73.9%“, they added.

The president of the airlines is Paolo Cerianiofficial who reports politically to the national senator and leader of La Cámpora Mariano Recalde (Ceriani was number two in Aerolineas when Recalde was president). On Monday, after the energetic measure of the APLA, Biró had said that he “had nothing against Ceriani”, and instead had harshly accused the new head of the Economy, Serge Massa.

“I don’t know what business they have with the American embassy,” Biró said Monday, on radio La 990. “Today (Monday) Massa met with the US ambassador. Behind JetSmart and Flybondi are Indigo and Cartesian funds, which come from the United States. And those funds have put people in Argentina that persecutes pilots who are affiliated with our union.

After this accusation, the trade unionist issued a statement in which he clarified his claim It is not just salary: “I broke my heart for a national and popular government and not from a right-wing government that tightens with good manners“.