SAS has called unions to discuss cost-cutting measures.

According to Danish daily Jyllands-Posten, Scandinavian carrier SAS has invited its workers’ largest unions to talks as part of the airline’s efforts to cut costs and boost flexibility in its pandemic-hit business.

“The biggest problem for SAS is costs, so that’s where we have to start,” SAS Chief Executive Anko van der Werff told the paper. “Other airlines have cut costs and can fly more flexibly and efficiently. We need to be able to do that, too.”

According to Jyllands-Posten, the talks might last three months. SAS shares were down 8.9% in early trading on Monday. Negotiations, according to Nordnet analyst Per Hansen, could prove difficult.

“After the strike in 2019, the pilots were able to negotiate large wage increases for which SAS had no finances at all,” he said in a note.

The airline, which is partly controlled by the governments of Sweden and Denmark, has seen a steady uptick in demand from leisure travellers this summer, but corporate travel has yet to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic’s effects.

Story by : Norvisi Mawunyegah