Flight cancellations and delays as Ryanair and EasyJet staff strike

Friday morning has seen the number of cancellations at Barcelona airport hit double figures as the cabin crews of both Ryanair and EasyJet have begun a new day of strike action to call for improved working conditions.

As of 7 pm, 14 flights had been canceled at the Barcelona El Prat airport – 8 from Ryanair and 6 from EasyJet. 

Counting both Girona and Barcelona airports, another 32 flights - 14 departures and 19 arrivals - were delayed.

The Ryanair strike is set to last until July 28 except for the weekends of July 16 to 17 and 22 to 24 and has been called for all ten airports in Spain where the Irish airline operates, including Barcelona and Girona.

This week and on other days of strike action from Ryanair cabin crew, scores of flights were called off across Catalonia and the continent. Thursday saw multiple cancellations and dozens of delays. 

EasyJet staff are set to stop working from July 15-17 and 29-31.

Dispute

The USO and Sitcpla unions argue that Ryanair employees are treated like "third-class workers" and call on the company to comply with "basic labor rights and court rulings." 

According to them, the low-cost airline should sit down to negotiate "a collective agreement and decent working conditions for all staff."

"Ryanair is the only international company in our country without a collective workers' agreement," Lidia Arasanz, the USO trade union secretary general at Ryanair.

On July 14, the USO union denounced that Ryanair had fired seven cabin crew members since the start of the strikes. Out of these, two workers are from Barcelona, another one from the Girona airport, three from the Malagan airport, and one from Santiago de Compostela's airport. 

The union considers the measure of silencing the protest as they "have not obeyed the airline's illegal rules," a statement from the USO union read. 

On May 31, the Irish company reached an agreement with the CCOO union regarding pay and working conditions that was rejected by USO and Sitcpla, as they point out that the agreement only applies to workers who are affiliated with the CCOO trade union but the majority of Ryanair cabin crew are affiliated with USO and Sitcpla. 

They also claim that many of the conditions agreed upon are actually based on court rulings won against the company, such as the salary increase of €1,000 in 2022 and €800 for 2023, as well as the fixed schedule of 5 days' work and three days' rest.

"In addition to negotiating an agreement without the unions representing staff, Ryanair is still not applying Spanish labor law," a USO statement adds, detailing that cabin crew are still not entitled to bank holidays in lieu, they have problems requesting a reduction in working hours, they do not receive salaries in the legally required format, and they cannot drink water on planes.