Air Europa have announced that they are extending current strike action in Spain with new dates up until Sunday 2nd July, causing more headaches for travellers. A statement released by the pilots union, SEPLA, said that more strikes will take place between Monday 19th June and July 2nd at all Air Europa bases and workplaces across the country.
SEPLA denounced the airline for allegedly breaching a verbal pre-agreement that had been made on June 8th regarding salary increases. It claims that the company distanced itself from this deal the next day and subsequently presented a ‘radically different’ document.
According to the union, they separated the salary update from the transfer of workers’ rights included in the Fourth Collective Agreement. Meanwhile, the company’s new proposal aimed to: “cheapen the workforce by impoverishing the rights and working conditions of new pilots joining the airline”.
These new strike dates are added to the eight days already carried out between May 22nd and June 2nd, when 114 flights were cancelled, and SEPLA blames the ‘confrontational’ attitude that the airline adopted in the negotiation of the new collective agreement as the reason behind the latest action.
Air Europa’s management is said to only be contemplating a new agreement aimed at ‘lowering’ working conditions, with a salary proposal below the CPI. This has subsequently resulted in no progress being made in the negotiation of the 5th Collective Agreement.
