The ongoing strike action at Charleroi Airport (BSCA) is continuing into Wednesday, forcing management to close their doors for all departures for a third day in a row over security reasons.
Tuesday was the second consecutive day that the airport experienced major disruptions following the strike of security personnel from the company Security Masters, which are usually responsible for screening passengers.
The Security Masters agents have been denouncing for several weeks the desire of BSCA Security to split future security between two companies, fearing that this decision will lead to competition between the staff of two providers, which unions fear will lead to job insecurity and lower pay.
"Tomorrow, there will be no passengers leaving the airport," stated Philippe Verdonck, CEO of the airport on Tuesday evening.
Five policemen have been injured during the strike action of the security personnel at Charleroi Airport on Tuesday 18 October 2022. Credit: Belga/Virginie Lefour
"Passengers have been warned. There were five police officers injured today and we can't play with security. This action is outrageous and tarnishes the image of the airport," he concluded, angrily.
Three days of strike action
The strike has caused the airport to close its departures on Monday and Tuesday afternoon after security staff blocked the entrances as part of their action.
This caused huge queues and crowds, with people missing their flights, while certain flights were deviated to Brussels Airport.
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On Tuesday, Test Achats stated that the continuing strike at Charleroi Airport (BSCA) is not a case explicitly covered by regulations around air passenger rights, urging travellers to proactively contact their airline.
Trade unions have blamed the airport management for the chaos, as BSCA Security has refused to negotiate with the unions over the row. On Tuesday, BSCA were also forced to apologise to passengers.
Credit: Belga/Virginie Lefour
Since Monday morning, Security Master staff in charge of passenger checks have been taking action out of dissatisfaction with BSCA Security's decision to assign passenger security checks to two operators instead of one.
Staff fear the decision will impact their job security and pay conditions.
According to Filip Pellens, manager of Security Masters, the decision to entrust the security screening of Charleroi Airport to two security companies instead of one was taken by BSCA Security.
"We only found out about it when the contract was published", said Filip Pellens.
