TUI isn’t known for going on strike, but you never know when airline employees will decide to stop working to ensure better wages and work conditions. Bottom line, better to prepare than to get caught off guard. To see how carriers handle stoppages, check our full list of airlines with strike compensation rules.
This guide will help you understand how different kinds of strikes will affect your compensation rights, what you should do if you’re affected, and how to prepare yourself in advance.
TUI Employee Strikes: Your Passenger Rights
As a TUI passenger, your rights are protected by Regulation EU261/2004. This means that if a strike leads to cancellations or delays, you may be eligible for TUI flight delay and cancellation compensation up to 600 EUR as long as certain conditions apply.
If you arrive late to your destination by 3 hours or more, then you become eligible for repayment as long as the airline is at fault. Also, if your flight is disrupted because of an employee strike, you’re entitled to care and assistance, a rebooking, or a refund.
How TUI Must Help You
- If your flight is cancelled because of a strike, you must be provided with a replacement flight OR a refund.
- If your flight is delayed, and you are left to wait at the airport for at least 2 hours, then you should be given food, refreshments, and for overnight delays, hotel accommodation and transport. Keep your receipts if you end up paying for these things yourself.
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Understanding Different TUI Employee Strikes
There are two different kinds of airline strikes: Announced and Wildcat. Generally, only announced strikes are eligible for repayment, but there have been exceptions to this. To make sense of this let’s look at the different kinds of strikes.
Announced Strikes
When airline personnel and management can’t agree on how to provide better working conditions or wages, then the employees will call a strike. This announcement is a final move to help urge TUI leadership to agree on the workers’ terms and conditions, or at least re-enter negotiations. When the announcement is made, it comes with a deadline, and if an agreement can’t be reached by the deadline, then the strike will take place and work will stop.
Most of the time, a strike will be called in advance. Because this gives TUI the chance to rectify the situation, if the strike does commence, then passengers are eligible for receiving compensation for flight delays and cancellations that happen as a result.
Wildcat Strike
Unlike announced strikes, wildcat strikes happen suddenly and without any warning. These kinds of work stoppages are rare, but when they do happen, it can create considerable problems for everyone.
TUIfly Wildcat Strike
In October 2016, TUIfly (Germany) employees spontaneously began calling in sick after the airline made a restructuring announcement. This sudden work stoppage caused significant problems and flight disruptions. Interestingly, the European Court of Appeals decided that in this case, the strike was within the airline’s control, and passengers were entitled to compensation for flight disruptions.
So, if you end up getting delayed because of a strike, it’s worth submitting a claim for repayment.
Can You Make Changes to Your Booking?
If a TUI strike has been announced, and the airline feels it will lead to flight interruptions, it will notify you of these changes by text (SMS), email, or via the mobile app. You can also look on TUI’s website to see if they have mentioned any work stoppage and its effect on upcoming flights.
When it comes to making booking changes, here’s what you should know:
- Refundable Tickets can be changed as usual and in accordance with the ticket policy and terms.
- Non-refundable tickets can sometimes be changed, but check with TUI to see if certain dates or conditions apply.
- Wait until TUI cancels your flight. If you discover that you can’t make changes to your trip, then wait until your flight is cancelled. When it is, you’ll be issued a refund or given the chance to rebook your flight to a better time.
4 Steps to Prepare for a TUI Strike
- Start looking for information and updates as soon as you hear that a strike has been announced. The best way to do this is to sign up for TUI notifications or download their mobile app.
- Check your travel insurance or the credit card used to buy your flight. Sometimes these will offer coverage for strike-related delays and cancellations.
- Read the terms and conditions of your ticket so you have a better understanding of what you can do about flight changes.
- Pack essentials in your carry-on bag to help you endure long delays in the airport.
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