Unions call on Ryanair cabin crew to strike June 24-26 and June 30-July 2

Two unions – USO and Sitcpla – have called for Ryanair's cabin crew in Spain to go on strike for six days over two upcoming weekends: June 24-26 and June 30-July 2.

In a statement, the unions said that Ryanair employees continue to be treated like "third-class workers" and called on the company to comply with "basic labor rights and court rulings."

They called on the low-cost airline to 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," said Lidia Arasanz, general secretary of the USO trade union at Ryanair.

On May 31, the Irish company came to an agreement with the CCOO union over pay and working conditions, an agreement rejected by USO and Sitcpla.

USO and Sitcpla say that the airline has sought to "cancel them" as unions after they refused to sign up to the "precarious conditions offered."

They also claim that many of conditions agreed 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," the statement concludes, 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.

Compensation rights

Consumer rights organization Facua reminded passengers who may be affected by the strike that they are entitled to compensation of at least €250 and a refund for the flight plus expenses in the event of a cancelation.

Although Ryanair has not yet announced any flight cancellations, "it is expected that certain routes may be affected," Facua warned in a statement on Monday.

European regulations, the statement said, state that "passengers will receive compensation of €250 for flights of up to 1,500 kilometers, €400 for flights of more than 1,500 kilometers within the EU and for other flights between 1,500 and 3,500 kilometers, and €600 for all other flights"

Furthermore, a 2018 ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) determined that a workers' strike is not considered to fall within "extraordinary circumstances", so the company cannot refuse compensation, the consumer rights organization said.

There are exceptions to the regulations, such as when the airline informs passengers of a cancellation "at least two weeks in advance of the scheduled departure time."

The CJEU in another ruling in May 2017 determined that the right to receive compensation is extended to those cases in which the flight is not canceled, but suffers a delay of more than three hours to its arrival time.

According to Facua, those affected by possible cancellations are always entitled to a full refund of the flight "within seven days", or to alternative transport to their destination.