Frances LeateSIX days of strikes just before Christmas could cause travel chaos for thousands of people hoping to get home or away.
Unions representing workers at the Spanish airline, Iberia, have announced they will stage the strikes immediately before the Christmas holidays in protest against the company’s plans to lay off 4,500 staff.
Ground staff and cabin crew are set to go on strike on December 14 and from December 17 to 21.
Francisco Rodriguez, from Spain’s largest workers’ union, the UGT, said the strikes were to protest against the ‘unnecessary layoffs’.
International Airlines Group, the merged British Airways andIberia, plans to cut 23% of the Spanish company’s staff and claims the carrier is ‘in a fight for survival’.
The pilots’ union, SEPLA, is not among the six unions backing the strike.
no me parece bien la huelga yo creo que los sindicatos solo les interesa el dinero y si una empresa quiebra les es igual y los trabajadores en este caso de Iberia tendrian que trabajar con la empresa y no morder la mano que les da de comer. que ya hay muchos parados en el pais y ellos buscan mas con sus egoismos y no se dan cuenta que si la empresa mejora podrian recuperar sus puestos de trabajo ..
You are right Jose. The unions have caused this mess by sabotaging Iberia Express. They have to realise that they work in a very competitive industry, and they must negotiate revision to their working conditions to enable the business to survive. Not strike and penalise other spaniards Christmas holidays.
Wow, was supposed to leave for Spain on the 17th to go spend Christmas with my Aunt. From the United States and never been out of the country. Guess it’s going to have to stay that way. If I didn’t show up to my job I would get fired. If I was Iberia I would fire everyone who doesn’t show up and rehire people who are willing to work, I’m sure there are plenty of people who need work.
File bankruptcy, renegotiate contacts, and let the people who want to stay work, and those who want to strike find a new job.
The sooner Iberia goes bust the better for all concerned, especially the long-suffering “customers”.
Ok, let´s for argument´s sake that you are one of the 4,500 staff that are about to be made redundant. It´s not your fault personally that the airline is in trouble but, nevertheless, you are going to lose your job.
This is Spain, remember, with its unemployment levels, so the chances of your finding another job are slim. You still have the mortgage or rent to pay, a family, children maybe getting ready to go off to university, and so on. You might even be in your late 40s or even 50s. And you are about to be laid off.
So what are you going to do? You could try lying on your back and hoping that management will tickle your tummy, of course. On the other hand, you could be so annoyed that you decide to vote “Yes” when faced with the strike ballot paper.
I know which I would choose to do.
@Tony. For years they have seen off attempts to change their terms and conditions, by voting “yes” on the strike ballot paper, even thought they all know very well that their T&Cs make the company completely unsustainable. Instead of all of them taking home a bit less and working a bit longer and harder, keeping Iberia in business and keeping their jobs, they’d prefer to collapse the whole show while blaming all their problems on British Airways and anyone else except from themselves. There won’t be many more opportunities to vote “yes”, as Iberia is in terminal decline and will not survive for much longer if things don’t change.
At least we can cancel our Iberia tickets to Spain for Christmas to stay with family. We’ll go to Mexico instead
I’d like to get Fred’s opinion on this one.
As others have correctly said, the airline business is a highly competitive sector, and only the most efficient and professional companies will survive. Just about every review site in existence gives Iberia a very poor to mediocre rating, so they must improve or else just give up. It is an awful prospect for the 4,500 staff, but all of the staff play a part in the airline – it’s not just the flying of the plane, is it? No one wants to see mass redundancies, but bad or poorly run companies, especially in the age of social media, become extinct. Striking will only infuriate customers, and given the current economic climate the government are likely to send the troops in again.
There you go Jim, you can get in now lol.
What a relief. In these difficult times its reassuring to hear that Iberia is doing what it does best every holiday.
For a while there i thought there might not be any strikes this year, and was seriously worried the Mayans were correct.
RIP Iberia.
But seriously, where are all those rube and unhelpful people going to go now? France? Government Jobs?
I wonder if the new Airline Hispania would consider taking these people on, I doubt it. As others have said workers bare a lot of responsibility for Iberia’s problems. However I get no joy from hearing about job losses.