The airline Austrian Airlines employs around 3.500 flying staff. According to official information, almost 1.300 flying employees took part in the most recent works meeting, which took place last Thursday. This means that less than half of those affected were interested in the concerns of the works council and the Vida union.

At first glance, a gathering of 1.300 employees, who were transported to the Multiversum Schwechat in buses chartered by employee representatives, is quite overwhelming. But if you consider that Austrian Airlines employs around 3.500 flying employees (pilots and flight attendants combined), this also means that 2.200 AUA employees or 62,86 percent did not show up at all. General meetings of many sports clubs, unless the statutes provide otherwise, would not have a quorum because less than half of the voting members showed up.

Of course, there are many different reasons why you don't show up at a staff meeting, but the bottom line is that only 37,14 percent of the AUA flying staff took part in the most recent company meeting. It is therefore no coincidence that a “spontaneous warning strike” was not decided again, as this could have brought the employee representatives into trouble.

For a strike decision to be made, a certain minimum turnout of employees entitled to vote is necessary. These can belong to the union, but this is by no means a must, especially in companies with a works council, because membership in unions is in principle voluntary. However, if the vast majority does not take part in such a vote, the necessary quorum is not reached and therefore no valid resolution is reached. In such a case, a strike call could well be legally challenged. At the Lufthansa Group it is now “good form” to take legal action against strike calls, works meetings and similar activities. The Kranich Group only won once, because the Cockpit Association made a formal error a few years ago. Otherwise, the airline group was more likely to embarrass itself in court, but this in no way represents an obstacle to further lawsuits.

Visually it may seem overwhelming when around 1.300 AUA employees gather in the Multiverse Schwechat, but at the same time you have to keep in mind that 62,86 percent of the employees did not follow the call of their works council and, if applicable, their union. Unity looks completely different and unfortunately things like this are fodder for the WKO negotiators, because the AUA is not allowed to negotiate the new collective agreement itself, but has to be represented by the Chamber of Commerce. So do only 37,14 percent of the AUA flying employees support the demands of their employee representatives, who are undisputedly and obviously making every effort to be able to negotiate the maximum for the flying staff of Austrian Airlines? Low attendance at a company meeting simply doesn't provide much credibility to the other side of the negotiating table.

A total of five rounds of negotiations between the Vida union and the Chamber of Commerce are scheduled to take place this week. There is still confidence that a compromise can be found. If not, then the Vida union could potentially call for a vote on possible strike action. It will then become clear whether the required quorum is achieved or not. In any case, those affected should support their employee representatives and not be conspicuous by their absence.