Workers' strike hits 100,000 passengers at Ben Gurion on the busiest day all year

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A surprise labor strike by workers at Ben Gurion Airport has caused significant disruption to Israel's aviation sector during the busiest day of the year, leaving approximately 107,000 passengers facing severe delays and frustration. Despite an agreement reached between management and the Histadrut union to resume operations, many employees have not yet returned to work, creating uncertainty about whether flights will depart or land as scheduled. The strike occurred at a critical time in late August, just weeks before the high holidays, exacerbating existing staffing shortages that have already led to issues like delayed luggage and missed connections for travelers. The core of the controversy lies in the union's decision to call a wildcat strike without publicly disclosing their specific demands, which has drawn sharp criticism from industry leaders who view the action as lacking transparency and responsibility. Experts note that Israel relies heavily on this single international airport for the vast majority of its air traffic, making such disruptions particularly frightening for both domestic travelers and incoming tourists. While there is a strong labor court capable of issuing immediate back-to-work orders to stop such actions, concerns remain about future tactics like mass sick calls or blocking parking lots, which could further destabilize operations if the underlying issues are not addressed. Regarding compensation for those affected by the chaos, it has been confirmed that travel insurance policies do not cover acts of God or wildcat strikes, meaning passengers who miss flights or incur hotel costs abroad will likely receive no reimbursement. Although some airlines have faced scrutiny over cancellations, reports indicate that major carriers like El Al, Arkia, and Israir managed to clear most morning and early afternoon flights by the afternoon, with many late arrivals also landing successfully. While lawsuits might be considered if the disruption were to last for several days rather than a few hours, the immediate focus remains on resolving the standoff so that stranded travelers can finally reach their destinations before Shabbat.

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Now, if you are flying in or out of Israel today, expect a lot of frustration. A surprise labor strike by Ben Gurion Airport workers brought check-ins and flights to a near standstill at the height of the summer travel season after anger over working conditions. About 650 flights and 107,000 passengers were expected to take off today, the airport's busiest day in a year, but delays to arrivals and departure are expected to last for hours because of this temporary strike. Workers and management have now reached an agreement to resume operations, but many employees have yet to return from what we understand. That may have changed as we speak, but joining us now is Mark Feldman. He's the CEO of Zion Tours. He has the latest on what travelers uh should expect. First of all, I just want to talk about how we even got to this situation. Break it down for us. >> We know there's a problem at the airport. We know there's a shortage of workers. We've had reports in the media and on your own station about people getting their luggage late, not showing up their luggage. So so we know there's a staffing problems. What is disconcerting is that the Histadrut, the workers' union, did not say what they are asking for. Are they asking for 20% increase in salary? Are they asking for 20% more workers? Instead, they called a wildcat strike on the busiest day of the year, okay? It it it's a new definition of chutzpah. Israeli consumers have suffered so much. The trickle of incoming tourists has been such a small amount that let's cause even more problems for them. Let's cause this discombobulation that people don't know will their planes take off or will they even land? Because for 90 minutes the airport was shut down. Now, yes, it's resumed operations, and for now the union is saying that everything is copacetic, but we need to be skeptical because we don't know what they were asking. It's obviously that the Israel Airport Authority has no idea of their own problems in terms of staffing and are not talking about negotiating with the union to bring more workers online. This may be the busiest day of the year, but we're still in the end of August. It's going to be busier towards the end of August and as we're all aware, the high holidays are coming in 3 weeks. >> Right. I mean, I think what's just you know, so wild here in Israel is the fact that there's really only one main international airport. Obviously, you have uh airport that is now functioning out of Haifa, but for you know, much less flights. You have Ramon Airport in the south, but the majority of traffic does go through Ben Gurion. So, when you see something like this, a message saying that, you know, the airport isn't functioning, it's certainly frightening for people across the country. You know, I guess the question that I would have for you is how long do you think a disruption like this could ultimately last? Right now, like you said, there is some type of deal that has been signed, but we don't know the details of it. >> The question is not this specific disruption will be over by by midnight tonight, okay? The question is what happens if they do it again on Sunday or Monday, Wednesday, Friday. Because nobody is talking about what the demands are, we have no idea what it was done. We know, fortunately, we have a strong labor court, okay? And a back-to-work order will be done almost immediately to bring the workers back to thing. But, you're going to have what's called sick-ins, where workers call in sick and don't show up. You're going to have them locking the parking lots so that people that parked their cars couldn't get out. There's a lot of mischief that can be called and the demand would be not just to sweep this under the rug, but to address the problems of what exactly the union is asking. And we don't know that. Nobody's reported it. So, today it's fine. I I've no concern that people will get to their destination before Shabbat. What I can't promise anybody is what's going to be next week or the week after. >> Well, I I mean, I think a lot of people who are watching this, especially those who may still be stuck in the airport because, you know, a lot of us know somebody who is actually in that chaos right now, is is there going to be any compensation for people who have missed their flights, who, you know, maybe lost a night in the hotel that they booked abroad. We already know how expensive it is for Israelis to fly out of this country since the start of the war, since October 7th. >> Sadly, no. No travel insurance covers acts of God or wildcat strikes, okay? Um if the airport authority is sued, I'm positive they will be able to wave it off. Will there be a class action suit against the Histadrut? Not for such a short several hour disruption. If this went on for several days, then yes, lawsuits would be flying left, right, and center because of the losses, but most of my own clientele spoke to me in tears asking when they would get off, but most of them will get off today. Um we've heard no reports of El Al canceling planes left, right, and center, nor Arkia, nor Israir. Um starting at, you know, 2:00 in the afternoon means that all of the morning and early afternoon flights all got out, and the flights that are supposed to land this afternoon have landed. So, >> That's good news. >> it's disruption, um but it's not going to rise to the level of getting compensation. >> Well, you know, I have to say that traveling in and out of Israel has just become such a nuisance in recent years. You just never know if you're going to get out, if you're going to be able to make it back in. It's expensive. This is just another added layer to that. So, hopefully there's going to be some type of solution, some silver lining, and I really do hope that everybody who's stuck at the airport is finally going to make it home. Mark, >> It would be nice if prices would be dropping in the near future. That too probably probably not going to happen. >> Well, on that note, unfortunately, we have to end the show.