Parliament intervention in Icelandair strike would require strong public interest

Any intervention by Iceland’s parliament in the looming strike by Icelandair aircraft mechanics would have to be justified by substantial and clear public interest, former Althingi Speaker Birgir Ármannsson told mbl.is.

Unless circumstances change, the mechanics are due to begin strike action at midnight in their wage dispute with Icelandair. Up to 100 flights could be cancelled each day while no agreement is reached.

Birgir said parliament had intervened in similar labour disputes several times in recent years when important interests were at stake, often in the aviation sector. Such interventions had generally been made through legislation.

In previous cases, legislation has halted the strike and required a legally mandated arbitration panel to rule on the disputed issues. Icelandair said in a statement issued last Monday that it wanted the dispute referred to arbitration because the parties were far apart over pay.

The most recent example followed a strike by aircraft mechanics at the Icelandic Coast Guard around the turn of 2020 and 2021. Public and seafarers’ safety was considered at risk after a Coast Guard helicopter had been unable to fly for about four days.

Infrastructure Minister Eyjólfur Ármannsson declined to say during Bylgjan radio’s midday news whether the government planned to submit a bill concerning the strike.

Birgir said the legislature would need to demonstrate convincingly that intervention was necessary to protect the public interest and that the dispute could not be resolved through less severe measures. Such cases had generally involved a strike that had already begun and a serious situation developing, he said.