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.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
A wild live dugong was found in Taiwan for the first time in 88 years, after it was accidentally caught by a fisher’s net on Tuesday in Yilan County’s Fenniaolin (粉鳥林). This is the first sighting of the species in Taiwan since 1937, having already been considered “extinct” in the country and considered as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. A fisher surnamed Chen (陳) went to Fenniaolin to collect the fish in his netting, but instead caught a 3m long, 500kg dugong. The fisher released the animal back into the wild, not realizing it was an endangered species at
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and