VIPA, AIPA join forces

The Virgin International Pilots Association (VIPA), which represents pilots from the Virgin Blue group of airlines, has joined forced with the Australian and International Pilots Association (AIPA) to increase the membership of V Australia pilots ahead of the negotiation of a new collective agreement.

The move will effectively bring together the two major unions for the Qantas and Virgin Blue groups. The two parties have announced that they will work together in negotiations for the new collective agreement.

“It is clear that pilots are best served by unified pilot associations that work together to resist the deskilling of pilots’ work and the negative effects of an increasingly globalised economy where pilots continue to bear the brunt of continuous cost cutting by airline employers,” the two unions said in a joint statement issued on February 18.