Ryanair axes at least 50 services into and out of UK due to strike

Hundreds of Ryanair flights – including at least 50 services into and out of Britain – will not take off as planned today due to pilot strikes in five countries.

Staff in Ireland, Germany, Sweden, Belgium and the Netherlands are holding a 24-hour walkout over pay and conditions at the peak of the busy summer season. 

At least 400 Ryanair flights have been cancelled as a result, which has forced passengers who planned on travelling today to rebook or take different routes.

Passengers sleep after Ryanair flights were cancelled at Berlin Schoenefeld Airport today

Ryanair passengers line up at the ticket counter as Diego Gomez (right) from Mexico sits on the terminal floor at Berlin Schoenefeld Airport this morning

Ryanair passengers line up at the ticket counter as Diego Gomez (right) from Mexico sits on the terminal floor at Berlin Schoenefeld Airport this morning

Passengers are seen at Terminal A of Berlin Schoenefeld Airport during the pilot strike today

Passengers are seen at Terminal A of Berlin Schoenefeld Airport during the pilot strike today

Ryanair planes have a capacity of 189, meaning more than 74,000 passengers could be affected, and it said they have been offered refunds or to reroute their journey.

The Irish budget airline, which is based in Swords, Dublin, called the strikes ‘regrettable and unjustified’ and urged unions to come back to the negotiating table.

But pilots counter that Ryanair has refused to engage in meaningful dialogue about collective labour agreements since it began recognising unions in December 2017. 

One customer described the airline as a ‘headache’, complaining they had had difficulty getting a quick response after contacting the firm on their live chat.

They tweeted: ‘Ryanair cancelled my flight in the last min because of pilots strike. They offer me to change my tickets online which it’s not possible because of their system crash. No one is on the phone and livechat. They even don’t do a refund. Ryanair is an headache.’

One customer described the airline as a 'headache', complaining they had had difficulty getting a quick response after contacting the firm on their live chat

One customer described the airline as a ‘headache’, complaining they had had difficulty getting a quick response after contacting the firm on their live chat

Ryanair pilots strike at Dublin Airport today as hundreds of flights will not take off as planned

Ryanair pilots strike at Dublin Airport today as hundreds of flights will not take off as planned

Empty check-in desks at Manchester Airport are pictured this morning during the strike

Empty check-in desks at Manchester Airport are pictured this morning during the strike

Another customer said she would miss work meetings and a doctor’s appointment due to a cancelled flight.

She wrote: ‘Many thanks to Ryanair for cancelling my flight home and ensuring all of the de-stressing I have done on this trip is cancelled out in an instant.’

Germany will be worst hit, with 250 cancellations at ten airports after the country’s Cockpit union called on pilots towalk out from 3.01am local time (2.01am BST).

It accused Ryanair of ‘categorically’ ruling out higher personnel costs for cockpit crew, leaving no room for a compromise.

‘Ryanair alone is responsible for the escalation we are now seeing,’ Cockpit president Martin Locher told a press conference on Wednesday.

Belgian Ryanair pilots take part in a protest this morning during the wider European strike

Belgian Ryanair pilots take part in a protest this morning during the wider European strike

Ryanair aircraft are parked on the ground at Brussels South Charleroi Airport in Belgium today

Ryanair aircraft are parked on the ground at Brussels South Charleroi Airport in Belgium today

Passengers wait at a Ryanair check-in counter today at Brussels South Charleroi Airport

Passengers wait at a Ryanair check-in counter today at Brussels South Charleroi Airport

In the Netherlands, Ryanair filed for an urgent court order to try to stop Dutch pilots from joining the industrial action.

Strikes give Ryanair another headache

Today’s unprecedented simultaneous strike action by Ryanair pilots is the latest headache in a turbulent summer for Europe’s second-largest airline.

It already suffered a round of strikes by cockpit and cabin crew last month that disrupted 600 flights in Belgium, Ireland, Italy, Portugal and Spain, affecting 100,000 travellers.

Ryanair, which flies in 37 countries and carried 130million people last year, averted widespread Christmas strikes last year by agreeing to recognise trade unions for the first time in its 33-year history. But since then it has struggled to reach agreements.

The company is eyeing profits of around €1.25billion (£1.12billion) this year, and boasts lower costs per passenger than its competitors.

But Ryanair pilots say they earn less than counterparts at other airlines like Lufthansa. Unions also want the airline to give contractors the same work conditions as staff employees.

Another key complaint of workers based in countries other than Ireland is the fact that Ryanair employs them under Irish legislation, arguing most of its employees work on Irish planes.

Staff claim this creates huge insecurity for them, blocking their access to state benefits in their country.

But the Haarlem District Court yesterday ruled against the airline. ‘The strike may go ahead,’ a judge said. Around 22 flights from Eindhoven airport could be hit.

But Ryanair insisted in a statement that ‘there will be no cancellations (of flights to and from the Netherlands) as a result of the unnecessary strike action by the Dutch pilot union.’

It later added in another statement that despite the ‘regrettable and unjustified strike action’ more than 2,000 flights – 85 per cent of its schedule – would operate as normal across Europe.

Customers were notified as early as possible and a majority of those affected had already been moved to another Ryanair flight, the airline added. 

At a Frankfurt press conference on Wednesday, Ryanair’s chief marketing officer Kenny Jacobs said the company’s German pilots enjoy ‘excellent working conditions’.

He said they earn up to €190,000 (£170,000), which was more than their peers at budget rival Eurowings made.

He added that Ryanair had already offered a 20 per cent pay rise this year, and 80 per cent of its pilots in Germany were now on permanent contracts.

Ryanair has repeatedly said it remained open to further talks with pilot representatives.

But its combative chief executive Michael O’Leary has also warned the airline may shift jobs and planes to more profitable areas if the turmoil continues.

It has already threatened to move part of its Dublin fleet to Poland, which could cost 300 jobs, including 100 pilot positions.

Belgium-based Ryanair pilots gather at Brussels Charleroi Airport this morning for the strike

Belgium-based Ryanair pilots gather at Brussels Charleroi Airport this morning for the strike

A Ryanair billboard is seen outside as passengers sleep at Berlin Schoenefeld Airport today

A Ryanair billboard is seen outside as passengers sleep at Berlin Schoenefeld Airport today

Ryanair pilots in Brussels protest slow progress in negotiating a collective labour agreement

Ryanair pilots in Brussels protest slow progress in negotiating a collective labour agreement

Unions have strongly condemned what they see as Ryanair’s attempts to play countries off against each other.

Peter Scherrer, deputy secretary general of the European Trade Union Confederation, said he welcomed today’s cross-border show of unity by pilots.

He claimed it made it harder for management to ignore their demands, adding: ‘I think it also sends a signal to other companies where workers are played off against each other.’

Ryanair alone is responsible for the escalation we are now seeing

Martin Locher, Cockpit president

A Ryanair spokesman said: ‘Ryanair took every step to minimise the disruption and we notified our customers as early as possible advising them of their free move, refund or reroute options. 

‘The majority of customers have already been accommodated on another Ryanair flight.  We want to again apologise to customers affected by this unnecessary disruption and we ask the striking unions to continue negotiations instead of calling any more unjustified strikes.’

In June Ryanair signed an agreement with the Unite union in Britain, giving hundreds of cabin crew employees full consultation rights and collective bargaining.

The airline said at the time that it was ‘a further sign of the progress Ryanair is making with trade unions since our December 2017 decision to recognise them’.

The Unite agreement came six months after the airline signed what was described as an ‘historic’ recognition deal with the trade union representing pilots.

Under the agreement, the British Airline Pilots’ Association was recognised as the sole trade union representing all of Ryanair’s 600 employed pilots based in the UK.



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