EAT will move to Leipzig next year, joining the courier company's main operation, which left Belgium as a result of tight restrictions on night flights out of Zaventem, leading to the loss of about 800 jobs.

DHL said the EAT move would not affect aircrew jobs, but union representatives pointed out that 12 pilots were made redundant in February this year, with another 36 possible redundancies now under discussion.

Unions have called for an arbitrator to be brought in. "We want to discuss the whole situation, not only bits and pieces," one union representative said. Unions are worried that this fourth round of job losses may not be the last.