Ryanair staff strikes set to sweep Europe
TENS of thousands of holiday-making families face further gloom as Ryanair cabin crews are to take strike action across Europe in the coming weeks.
The airline staff in hotspots Portugal, Italy and Spain, as well as Belgium, will stop working on different days from July 25 in a dispute for
Stoppages on July 25 and 26
better conditions.
The grim news comes just days after 100 pilots announced their intention to strike for the first time next Thursday, July 12, in a row over new working practices.
Cabin crews in Italy will hold a 24-hour strike on July 25 and crews in Spain, Portugal and Belgium will strike for 48 hours on July 25 to 26, five unions said. They are Belgium’s CNE/LBC, Spain’s SITCPLA and USO, Portugal’s SNPVAC and Italy’s Ultrasporti.
The cabin crews want contracts to be governed by the law of the country where staff are based and for Ryanair to apply the same terms and conditions to all cabin crew, including those recruited through third party agencies such as Workforce and Crewlink. They warned of further action if the airline, run by Michael O’Leary, does not make concessions on work terms.
Meanwhile, Ryanair pilots’ union IALPA said next week’s planned 24-hour stoppage will only be averted if agreement is reached on their 11 key demands for a seniority agreement.
Yesterday, the airline appealed to the pilots to call off the strike and offered to meet the union and its affiliate Fórsa at company HQ in Swords on Monday.
However, Fórsa said the airline’s pilots decided to proceed with their strike ballot because they had seen ‘no evidence’ that management were ready to engage in meaningful negotiations with a view to reaching agreement on the issues they put to the company.
At a meeting yesterday, staff, who did not want to be identified, said they face huge pressure to reach sales targets and claimed this was management’s priority rather than providing good customer service.
Staff said the amount of sales commission they earn determines whether they get promotions or transfers.