Tens of thousands of travellers could see their holiday plans disrupted after Air NZ union workers announced plans to strike just before Christmas.
The Aviation and Marine Engineers Association and Etu informed the airline on Thursday of a total strike by almost 1000 unionised employees on Friday December 21.
The strike could put the holiday plans of more than 40,000 Kiwis at risk.
Air NZ has accused the engineers of deliberately using Kiwis' long-awaited holidays as a bargaining tool, but the union says the airline is releasing misleading information, and the strikes are in relation to cuts to their working conditions.
Savage, Head of Aviation at Etu explains how many workers are affected and why they have been in negotiations for six weeks.
"This is not just about pay. It's about repeated proposals by the airline weeks out from Christmas to pay them less than colleagues who have already settled, and to cut into key conditions, including overtime rates.
"This affects line and hangar engineers, but also store workers and aircraft cleaners, who are covered by the same document and who are struggling to get ahead," he says.
Listen to RadioLive's Trudi Nelson talk to Savage in this video.
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