Staff at Geneva airport go on strike for the first time in its history
About a thousand workers at Geneva airport went on strike early on Friday morning in protest at the freezing of their wages.
The walkout, which started at 4am, affected around 8,000 travellers as dozens of flights were cancelled.
One traveller tweeted a photo of the departures board showing the cancelled flights.
But the possibility of another strike on Saturday was averted, after local authorities in the canton of Geneva who own the airport, intervened.
An agreement was made with the striker's union to delay the wage freeze for at least a year and a joint commission was established.
"We're having more and more difficulty simply getting wages indexed to the cost of living. So obviously, in such a context, attacking salary mechanisms and therefore lowering them, when the company is making a profit, obviously provokes resistance, and staff have no other solution," said Pierre-Yves Maillard, the president of the Swiss Trade Union.
But Pierre Bernheim, president of Geneva Airport, said: “I'm sad because they are taking passengers, who may have saved money for a long time, hostage.”
Although very disrupted, air traffic has been partially resumed, bringing some relief to passengers who, in Switzerland, are not accustomed to this type of situation.
Inflation dropped slightly in the eurozone the EU statistics agency Eurostat announced on Friday from 6.1% to 5.5%.
It's the first strike at the airport, which is Switzerland’s second-busiest, since it opened in 1919. Around 18 million passengers used it last year.
By AFP
Published June 30, 2023
Travellers queued to enter Geneva International Airport before the strike was extended to last through Saturday - Copyright AFP Farooq NAEEM
A strike paralysed Geneva airport on Friday, grounding flights for two days at Switzerland’s second-busiest airport at the start of the busy summer travel season.
Airport employees initially walked off the job from 6:00-10:00 am (0400 GMT and 0800 GMT), forcing the cancellation of dozens of flights.
But shortly before the strike was due to end, staff gathered outside the terminal voted to prolong the walkout until the end of Saturday.
An airport spokesman said on Thursday that some 8,000 passengers would likely be affected by the four-hour walkout at the airport, a key hub for the EasyJet budget carrier.
A number of international flights from North America and the Middle East had been delayed in order to arrive after the initial strike was due to end, according to a tweet by the airport on Friday.
The strike was called after the airport’s board approved on Thursday a new wage policy contested by staff.
Many police and security staff were posted in front of the terminal and only passengers for flights scheduled for after the initial strike period had been allowed inside.
Striking workers and trade unionists were protesting outside the terminal’s main entrance.
It is the first-ever strike by staff directly employed by the airport, as opposed to subcontractors, and according to Swiss airline includes air traffic controllers as well as those which guide planes along the tarmac.
“In Switzerland strikes are very rare” as they may be called only after a process of consultations, said Claire Pellegrin, head of the airport staff commission.
“It’s the last option that we never thought we’d get to,” she added.
A trade unionist said it was difficult to understand how they had arrived at the impasse.
“The airport is a profitable business which enjoys a monopoly and is attacking the conditions of its staff,” said Pierre-Yves Maillard, head of the Swiss Trade Union Confederation (USS), who turned out to support the strikers.
Nearly 6.8 million passengers used the Geneva airport between January and May, according to official statistics.
The aviation industry has been keen to avoid a repeat of the chaos seen at European airports last year.
The sector struggled to cope with a surge in travel as it was severely understaffed after laying off thousands during the Covid pandemic.
Passengers faced huge lines, misplaced luggage and flight delays.
Other European airports and airlines have also faced strikes by staff.
By AFP
Published June 30, 2023
Dozens of flights were cancelled at Geneva airport on Friday due a strike by staff
Some 64 flights were cancelled at Geneva’s international airport on Friday, it said, after operations were halted for four hours because of a strike by workers at the start of the busy summer travel season.
“Because of the social action… the direction decided a temporary halt of operations from 6:00 am to 10:00 am (0400 GMT and 0800 GMT),” the airport said in a tweet early on Friday. “64 flights — arrivals and departures — cancelled.”
An airport spokesman said on Thursday that some 8,000 passengers were estimated to be affected by the cancellations at Switzerland’s second airport, a key hub for the EasyJet budget carrier.
Numerous international flights from North America and the Middle East were affected.
The strike was called after the airport’s board approved on Thursday a new wage policy contested by staff, and could be renewed for the days ahead.
Many police and security staff were posted in front of the terminal and only passengers for flights scheduled for after the strike period were being allowed inside.
About 50 striking workers and trade unionists were protesting outside the terminal’s main entrance.
It is the first-ever strike by staff directly employed by the airport, as opposed to subcontractors, and according to Swiss airline includes air traffic controllers as well as those which guide planes along the tarmac.
A trade unionist said it was difficult to understand how they had arrived at the impasse.
“The airport is a profitable business which enjoys a monopoly and is attacking the conditions of its staff,” said Pierre-Yves Maillard, head of the Swiss Trade Union Confederation (USS), who turned out to support the strikers.
Nearly 6.8 million passengers used the airport between January and May, according to official statistics.
The aviation industry has been keen to avoid a repeat of the chaos seen at European airports last year.
The sector struggled to cope with a surge in travel as it was severely understaffed after laying off thousands during the Covid pandemic.
Passengers faced huge lines, misplaced luggage and flight delays.
Other European airports and airlines have also faced strikes by staff.
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