Aviation is often discussed along the economy vs. safety continuum. Yet, between the ends of this spectrum is an even more important entity: the people. Millions of passengers as well as more than 8 million workers worldwide are directly affected by the dynamics of the civil aviation industry. It is against this background that governments, employers and employees met during the Global Dialogue Forum of the International Labor Organization (ILO) to discuss the impact of the economic crisis on the civil aviation industry.

The two-day deliberations of more than 150 aviation and labour stakeholders, including ECA, concluded in agreement that aviation is at a critical point. Not only does the industry suffer from the economic downturn but other challenges, such as increasing liberalization and new business models, are emerging and changing civil aviation operations.

Those dynamic changes are also raising many concerns. All participants in the ILO forum agreed on the need to globally promote a level playing field as well as decent and productive jobs. Concretely, a key decision of the meeting is to convene employers and employees to a social dialogue on the industry. A small tripartite meeting will monitor and evaluate the progress and implementation of the Global Forum’s recommendations. The participants also agreed that the ILO and the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) should work more closely together to ensure a safe industry in a competitive global setting.

ECA is welcoming the result-oriented recommendations and will actively contribute to achieving feasible results in the near future.