Airplanes of the Dutch airline KLM are parked at Schiphol airport in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, March 31, 2020. (Photo by Sylvia Lederer/Xinhua)
With nearly all COVID-19 restrictions lifted in the Netherlands, the number of passengers has continued to grow recently. In April 2022, 4.4 million passengers flew to, from or via Schiphol. However, the staff that left during the COVID-19 crisis have not returned yet.
THE HAGUE, June 3 (Xinhua) -- Chaotic scenes at Amsterdam's Schiphol airport in the Netherlands recently have fueled anger among staff, travelers and politicians, as the international airport seemed ill-prepared for the influx of travelers following the easing of COVID-19 restrictions.
On April 23 a wild strike broke out among KLM airline baggage employees at the airport who were angry about high workload. In the weeks that followed, passengers got angry as well because of frequent long queues and canceled flights. This was attributed to the large inflows of travelers and staff shortages of security guards and baggage handlers.
Chaos intensified at Schiphol on May 30, with travelers even queuing hundreds of meters outside in the rain. Travelers complained and blamed the airport. Schiphol airport CEO and president Dick Benschop publicly apologized for the situation.
A runner runs along the windmills in Kinderdijk, the Netherlands, Nov. 18, 2020. (Photo by Sylvia Lederer/Xinhua)
The Schiphol airport in Amsterdam is the Netherlands' main gateway to the rest of the world, and over the years, it has grown to become one of the largest hub airports in Europe.
During the peak periods of the COVID-19 pandemic, passenger numbers at Schiphol dropped enormously and planes were stationary, staff not needed and fired. In April 2019 before the pandemic, Schiphol saw 6.1 million passengers travel to, from and via the airport, while the airport counted only 100,000 passengers in April 2020 due to anti-pandemic measures.
With nearly all COVID-19 restrictions lifted in the Netherlands, the number of passengers has continued to grow recently. In April 2022, 4.4 million passengers flew to, from or via Schiphol. However, the staff that left during the COVID-19 crisis have not returned yet.
Whether in security, flight handling or check-in counters, there are too few employees everywhere to allow the large number of passengers who want to go on vacation or business trips to move through without too much delay.
The Netherlands Trade Union Confederation (FNV) had sent Schiphol a cry for help in October last year to prevent similar chaos as in the summer of 2021, but Schiphol ignored this "signal from the workplace," according to the FNV. Recently, the union warned in a letter to Schiphol about a "hot summer" if an agreement was not reached soon.
In the letter, the union mentioned that last summer "everything that could go wrong went wrong" due to staff shortage. According to the FNV, the employees are sick and tired of the chaos, low wages and an unsafe situation for themselves and travelers at Schiphol.
A few weeks ago, FNV set the deadline for an agreement on June 1, otherwise, actions would follow.
"The government must assume its leading role and take steps to improve the situation at the airport," Joost van Doesburg, FNV board member and Schiphol campaign manager for the union, said in a press release. "I can imagine that otherwise the next work stoppage or strike, with the busy summer months approaching, will arrive on short notice."
Minister of Infrastructure and Water Management Mark Harbers urged Schiphol to do everything possible to prevent new chaos, while acknowledging that more sectors had start-up problems as COVID-19 restrictions eased.
Photo taken on Aug. 25, 2019 shows people visiting the miniature park Madurodam in The Hague, the Netherlands.(Xinhua/Lin Liping)
Harbers emphasized that Schiphol is partly owned by the Dutch state and that the situation at the airport is important for the Netherlands. "We cannot afford to have the aviation system at the largest airport being in chaos for too long."
On Tuesday evening, just before the deadline of the FNV, Schiphol and the union came to an agreement, which was presented to the House of Representatives.
"It will be rewarding to work at Schiphol again," Van Doesburg said to reporters while entering the parliament building in the Hague.
He was joined by Benschop, who called the agreement a turning point. "For a long time, growth and costs were paramount for the airport, but that is no longer the case. It is now about quality and that includes quality of work."
In the forthcoming summer, passengers at Schiphol will nevertheless have to take into account crowds and queues that are longer than usual, Benschop and Van Doesburg both explained. But the general agreement concluded on Tuesday between Schiphol and the union is expected to help improve the situation. ■
