EVA Airways pilots could go on strike during the Lunar New Year and Tomb-Sweeping Festival if no agreement is reached with the airline, the Taoyuan Union of Pilots said in a statement yesterday.
The union’s board of directors convened yesterday to discuss details of the planned strike after the union and airline on Wednesday failed to reach a consensus following negotiations.
The board decided that the potential strike could take place between Feb. 7 and Feb. 18, and between March 30 and April 7.
Photo: Taipei Times
The announcement is for people who are scheduled to travel during the two holidays to prepare backup plans in advance, the union said.
“We will announce the start and the end of the strike and other relevant information on our Web site, www.tup.org.tw, 24 hours before the strike begins,” the union said.
The board meeting has authorized union staff to organize two or three drills before the strike to ensure that union members can accurately follow instructions when the strike begins, the union said.
“We are not giving up any opportunity to negotiate with EVA Airways management and will seek every opportunity to reach an agreement with the airline,” the union said. “As long as the airline gives concrete responses to our demands before the scheduled meeting on Wednesday, we would participate in the negotiation as planned.”
The Civil Aviation Administration in a statement urged the airline and its pilots to continue negotiations following the meeting on Wednesday.
Both sides should consider travelers’ interests and try to settle the dispute by showing goodwill and seeking a consensus, it said.
The union’s announcement has added to uncertainty for travelers, the agency said, adding that EVA Airways has been asked to deliver contingency plans for possible scenarios during the strike and put them on the airline’s Web site.
Taoyuan International Airport Corp, the operator of Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, must also prepare for potential disruptions to flight services during the strike and respond accordingly, it added.
EVA Airways in a statement said that it would continue to negotiate with the union in the hope of reaching an agreement.
“If the union proceeds to strike, we would announce the flights affected on our official Web site and app. There would also be a specific Web page informing travelers about flight information updates,” the airline said.
Travelers affected by the strike would be able to request refunds or change tickets without any processing fees, the airline said, adding that it would do its best to help people transfer to other flights.
A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck off the coast of Hualien County in eastern Taiwan at 7pm yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The epicenter of the temblor was at sea, about 69.9km south of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 30.9km, it said. There were no immediate reports of damage resulting from the quake. The earthquake’s intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was highest in Taitung County’s Changbin Township (長濱), where it measured 5 on Taiwan’s seven-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 4 in Hualien, Nantou, Chiayi, Yunlin, Changhua and Miaoli counties, as well as
Credit departments of farmers’ and fishers’ associations blocked a total of more than NT$180 million (US$6.01 million) from being lost to scams last year, National Police Agency (NPA) data showed. The Agricultural Finance Agency (AFA) said last week that staff of farmers’ and fishers’ associations’ credit departments are required to implement fraud prevention measures when they serve clients at the counter. They would ask clients about personal financial management activities whenever they suspect there might be a fraud situation, and would immediately report the incident to local authorities, which would send police officers to the site to help, it said. NPA data showed
ENERGY RESILIENCE: Although Alaska is open for investments, Taiwan is sourcing its gas from the Middle East, and the sea routes carry risks, Ho Cheng-hui said US government officials’ high-profile reception of a Taiwanese representative at the Alaska Sustainable Energy Conference indicated the emergence of an Indo-Pacific energy resilience alliance, an academic said. Presidential Office Secretary-General Pan Men-an (潘孟安) attended the conference in Alaska on Thursday last week at the invitation of the US government. Pan visited oil and gas facilities with senior US officials, including US Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, US Secretary of Energy Chris Wright, Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy and US Senator Daniel Sullivan. Pan attending the conference on behalf of President William Lai (賴清德) shows a significant elevation in diplomatic representation,
The Taipei MRT is to begin accepting mobile payment services in the fall, Taipei Rapid Transit Corp said on Saturday. When the company finishes the installation of new payment units at ticketing gates in October, MRT passengers can use credit cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay, the operator said. In addition, the MRT would also provide QR payment codes — which would be compatible with Line Pay, Jkopay, iPass Money, PXPay Plus, EasyWallet, iCash Pay, Taiwan Pay and Taishin Pay — to access the railway system. Currently, passengers can access the Taipei MRT by buying a single-journey token or using EasyCard,
RSS