Filenews 24 June 2022
Ryanair cabin crew members went on strike today in Belgium, Spain and Portugal in a dispute over wages and working conditions, in the latest wave of strikes by workers in various sectors in Europe.
The jump in inflation across the continent has resulted in millions of workers struggling with the rising cost of living, leading trade unions to demand higher wage increases, often accompanied by calls for strikes.
Air carriers and airport management companies are also facing shortages of workforce to be able to adequately manage the flow of passengers as demand for travel recovered with the end of most COVID-19 restrictions. Workers at many other airlines, such as British Airways, are also planning strikes this summer.
Ryanair's cabin crew unions in Belgium, Spain and Portugal have called a three-day strike starting today. Staff in France and Italy were expected to be absent from work at the weekend. Crews in Spain are expected to strike again on June 30 and July 1-2.
Workers argue that the Irish airline does not respect local labour laws on issues such as the minimum wage and call on Ryanair chiefs to improve working conditions.
"The conditions are terrible," said Ricardo Penaroias, president of SNPVAC, the union that called the strike in Portugal. "A crew member is not allowed to take a single bottle of water on a flight."
Ryanair did not immediately respond to a request for comment today, but last week told Reuters that it had negotiated labour agreements covering 90% of staff across Europe and that it does not expect widespread problems this summer.
PAY-PRICE SPIRAL
Much of the protests concern the transport sector and is called upon to manage the return to travel after the lockdowns of the pandemic.
French trade unions today jointly launched a nationwide strike by railway workers on 6 July and this week the demonstrations paralysed Britain's railway network.
There are signs that the upheaval is spreading to other sectors -- the French trade union CGT has called a 24-hour strike for today demanding higher wages for oil refinery workers after talks with TotalEnergies collapsed.
With inflation exceeding 8% in the eurozone, in Britain at a 40-year high of 9.1% and in some central and eastern European economies at double-digit rates, officials worry that a wage-price spiral is being created, in which higher wage demands are intensifying inflationary pressures.
European Central Bank chief Christine Lagarde has warned that the longer inflation remains high, then it is more likely to affect wage negotiations.
Pilots' and cabin crew unions in Brussels Airlines, Lufthansa's Belgian subsidiary, also went on strike yesterday. In three days, Brussels Airlines is expected to cancel about 60% of its 533 flights.
Belgium is likely to be the hardest hit by the Ryanair strike, with local media reporting that 127 flights at Charleroi Airport will be cancelled, affecting 21,000 passengers. Ten more Ryanair flights per day are expected to be cancelled at Brussels airport.
In Lisbon, two flights have been cancelled so far today, both to Brussels. A total of 18 Ryanair flights between Brussels and Spanish cities scheduled for today and tomorrow were cancelled, according to Spanish air caregiver syndicate USO.
In Spain, the government forced the company to carry out 73%-82% of flights during the strike period to offer the minimum services, forcing most to work.
Ernesto Iglesias, from the USO, said the government's decision restricts workers' right to strike. Commenting on the situation in Spain, Ryanair's chief executive Eddie Wilson said workers there are asking for a 165% pay increase.
The SNPVAC trade union said that many flights will not be cancelled from Portuguese airports as the company had workers waiting and asked cabin crews in other countries to replace them. According to Ryanair, SNPVAC represents only 3% of its staff in Portugal.
Source: Capital.gr
