Check your plane tickets friends, especially if you were counting on a meal during your local flight today.

Anyone flying SAA, SA Express, SA Airlink, Mango Airlines, Air Mauritius, or Swiss Airlines will be going hungry.

This is according to the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa), which has warned that, due to strike action, there will be no catering services on these airlines – and in airport lounges – for anyone travelling from major SA airports, reports TimesLIVE.

“The strike will affect OR Tambo airport, Cape Town International and King Shaka in Durban. We advise that if you intend to fly on certain airlines tomorrow [Monday] please pack a ‘skhaftin’ [lunch box] because there will no food or catering on the flight,” said  Numsa spokesperson, Phakamile Hlubi-Majola.

Air Chefs is a subsidiary of SAA. It makes sense that SAA would have something to do with this, as they just can’t seem to get it together.

Air Chefs has gone to court to interdict the strike by the union.

The union has said that workers have had enough after their anniversary bonuses were withdrawn by management.

“From January 2019 to date, no employee has received it and our members are demanding that the company must pay it because it is part of their benefit of employment,” said Hlubi-Majola.

In the meantime, Air Chefs is working hard to put a contingency plan in place until the court rules on the interdict.

“In addition to an interdict, Air Chefs has activated its contingency plans to ensure business continuity should the industrial action materialise. This means [that] measures are in place to mitigate the impact of the strike by Numsa and to render services to all Air Chefs customers, including the airlines it provides catering services to.

The union is not happy about the interdict proceedings.

“Since serving the company with a notice to strike, Air Chefs has applied for an urgent interdict in an attempt to block the strike. We condemn the backward management with the contempt they deserve,” said Hlubi-Majola.

Those are fighting words, so you’d best pack a lunchbox before boarding.

[source:timeslive]