According to a union announcement made by E tū, which is “the largest private sector trade union in Aotearoa New Zealand“, more than 1,200 cabin crew employed by Air New Zealand (NZ) are threatening industrial action over pay and working conditions, The dispute, which centres on what crew describe as inadequate remuneration and chronic fatigue risks, has escalated to the point where a strike appears increasingly likely.
The action would primarily affect Auckland Airport (AKL), which is New Zealand’s largest international hub, and other major bases including Christchurch (CHC) and Wellington (WLG). The union argues that after protracted bargaining, management has failed to offer a “fair deal” to onboard staff, prompting members to prepare for a strike unless meaningful concessions are made.
Air New Zealand Overview
(Updated Table)
| Category | Information |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Auckland, New Zealand |
| Main Hub | Auckland Airport (AKL) |
| Secondary Hubs | Wellington (WLG), Christchurch (CHC) |
| Founded | 1940 (as Tasman Empire Airways Limited) |
| Fleet Size | ~106 aircraft (A320-family, 787, ATR 72, Q300) |
| Primary Long-Haul Aircraft | Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner |
| Primary Short-Haul Aircraft | Airbus A320neo / A321neo |
| Key International Markets | Australia, U.S., Asia, Pacific Islands |
| Annual Passengers (approx.) | ~17 million |
| Key Loyalty Program | Airpoints™ |
| Total Employees | ~10,000+ |
| Major Alliance | Star Alliance member |
| Signature Service Features | SkyCouch, Premium Economy products |
| Total Cabin Crew | Around 4,700 across domestic and international fleets |
| Cabin Crew Bases | Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch |
| Cabin Crew Training Requirements | 6–8 weeks initial training + annual recurrent training |
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Union’s case for Cabin Crew Strike against Air New Zealand
According to E tū, the union that represents cabin crew of Air New Zealand, despite pay negotiations for flight attendants of the national carrier, they have not been fairly valued. The crew contend that their current wages do not properly reflect the following responsibilities of what Michael Wood, E tū Director, says are “shift workers“:
- unsociable hours
- frequent standby requirements that disrupt ordinary life
- rosters that change every month
- long periods away from their families
A popular example of the unsociable hours are red-eye flights, which typically take place around the mid-night to the early morning hours.
Aero Corner cited research, that pointed towards the fact that passengers “who travel via red-eye flights are at an increased risk of depression, heart diseases, and lower metabolism levels along with disturbed sleeping patterns due to the nature of red-eye flights”. The same could be true of cabin crew who are deployed regularly in red-eye flights as well.
Michael feels that Air New Zealand (which once painted an aircraft with Lord of the Rings livery) has not adequately addressed safety concerns tied to duty hours of these workers who are, in his own words, “the face of the airline“, and have suffered job cuts during the Covid-19 (4400 job losses since the beginning of 2020 till November 2020) and have “worked through huge challenges“:
“They welcome people to the country, keep passengers safe, and support travellers in all sorts of situations…… they deserve respect and a fair wage……Instead, they are not paid enough for what they do and the hours they work, with current guaranteed base salaries of around $60,000. Crew are expected to trade away hard-won conditions, while the company is in the middle of a $100 million share buy-back. It’s unreasonable, and our members have had enough.”
What has added to the problem is the increasing cost of living in New Zealand. Besides, as we’ve touched upon previously, the rising burden of scheduling, and a perceived lack of recognition for experienced staff also adds to the woes. The union claims that their demands are not unreasonable but reflect a genuine need for sustainable and safe working conditions.
Comparable Past Disputes for Air New Zealand Cabin Crew
E tū, the union that is representing the flight attendants of Air New Zealand and have expressed that the cabin crew will go on strike, started in 2015 and according to its LinkedIn profile, it is is an amalgamation of following former unions:
- FARSA (Flight Attendants and Related Services Union)
- EPMU (Engineering, Printers, and Manufacturing Union)
- SFU (Service and Food Workers’ Union)
Reporting about the current possibility of a strike, Chris Lynch reported that, “the affected staff work under three separate agreements covering international, domestic, and regional operations“. Here is a comparison of this current threatened strike with previous industrial disputes involving Air New Zealand cabin crew and other airline crew strikes:
| Event | Year | Parties Involved | Key Issue |
|---|---|---|---|
| Training ban strike | 2018–2020 | Air NZ cabin crew (E tū) | Pay disparity & initial pay rates for returning crew, as disputes showed that crew were working up to 22 hours in the case of delay on the New York route. |
| Crew job cuts | 2020 | Air NZ, E tū union | Redundancies affecting wide-body (the Boeing 777 and the Boeing 787) international crew |
| Current threatened strike | 2025 | Air NZ cabin crew | Pay, fatigue risk, long-haul workload |
The pattern shows that similar disputes have occurred before, but previous actions focused more on training or redundanciesv (as was the case in 2020) rather than a full-scale strike threat.
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A brief on E tū, the Union, and a Brief history on Unionism in New Zealand
E tū’s heritage stretches back more than a century, built on movements that fought for safer workplaces, fair pay, and equal treatment for all kinds of workers. Some of the earliest campaigns that contributed to this legacy began in the mid-19th century and helped shape the foundations of New Zealand’s labor rights, as you can read in the table below:
| Period / Event | Significance | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| 1840 – Samuel Parnell’s 8-hour stance | Early push for work-life balance | Set a principle later adopted nationwide |
| 1860s – Rise of trade unions | Formation of carpenters, engineers, printers, and other skilled groups | Established the first organized labor movements |
| 1890s – Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act | Formal recognition of unions | Enabled legal organizing and award negotiations |
| 1913 Strike & 1951 Lockout | Large-scale direct-action disputes | Built long-term organizing experience |
| 1980s–1990s economic reforms | Deregulation weakened unions | Led to mergers and new organizing models |
| Recent worker-rights campaigns | Equal pay, minimum-wage rulings, living-wage victories | Strengthened national labor standards |
| 2015 Formation of E tū | Merger of EPMU, SFWU, and FARSA | Created a larger, more capable union |
All in All
E tū has said that members had taken the following steps to avoid the possibility of flight disruptions:
- Air New Zealand’s cabin crew on international duty will return to New Zealand during any action so as to avoid passengers being stranded outside the nation.
- The week prior to Christmas will not see any strike
Michael Wood feels that the best way to avoid any form of travel disruption is “for Air New Zealand to engage in good faith and negotiate a fair outcome”, and has iterated that the organization remains “ready to work hard in the coming weeks to reach a settlement.”