This Thursday afternoon, officials from the General Directorate of Civil Aviation (DGAC) announced that starting at 8:00 a.m. on Friday, the 15th, they will begin an “indefinite slowdown” of services at all airports in Chile.
According to the announcement, this measure will not suspend services but will slow down operations, leading to significant delays in passenger flow, which could result in passengers missing their scheduled flights.
Demand for a permanent bonus and rejection of the Government’s proposal
The workers’ decision was communicated by the Association of DGAC Unions to the Ministry of Defense after negotiations failed to reach a satisfactory agreement. The unions’ main demand is the payment of a universal permanent bonus, claiming that the Government’s offer does not meet expectations.
Workers in the Metropolitan Region, specifically operators, are demanding an annual bonus of 4.2 million pesos, which amounts to approximately $350,000 monthly per person. However, the Government responded with a significantly lower offer, proposing an incentive of $600,000 annually, broken down into $30,000 monthly in 2025 and an increase to $50,000 monthly in 2026.
Union rejection and call for negotiations
The proposal was rejected by the DGAC employee associations, who argued that it does not address workers’ needs or account for the “publicly known fiscal constraints,” despite the DGAC being recognized as one of the public services with the highest benefits and salaries.
In light of this situation, the unions emphasized their call for the authorities to halt the mobilizations through a realistic and sustainable solution to resolve the conflict without affecting the operability of the country’s airports.
