easyJet cabin crew in Portugal are set to stage two strikes, the first from 2 to 6 October and the second from 19 to 23 December, with the action expected to affect the airline’s operations at Lisbon, Porto and Faro airports.
According to the National Union of Civil Aviation Flight Personnel (SNPVAC), around 500 scheduled flights could be grounded during the October strike, excluding any minimum services imposed by the authorities.
The walkout in December could have an even greater impact on the low-cost carrier’s operations, as it coincides with the busy Christmas travel period.
easyJet cabin crew held an emergency general meeting this week to discuss working conditions at the airline and decide on further action.
In a statement, SNPVAC said the decision to call the strikes was approved unanimously by the 188 easyJet employees who took part in the meeting. It followed “numerous attempts made by easyJet cabin crew to resolve labour and pay issues, which the company has ignored”, the union said.
Among the grievances raised are frequent changes to duty rosters, the alleged breach of the collective labour agreement, unequal treatment of cabin crew and pilots, problems with operational planning and pressure to work overtime because of staff shortages.
The union accuses easyJet of keeping Portuguese crew on “wages below those paid by other airlines operating in Portugal and below those paid by easyJet itself in other countries in the network”, where it said salaries fairly reflect the cost of living and the national minimum wage.
SNPVAC also speaks of a “climate of tension and dissatisfaction caused by the long and intolerable deadlock over the various labour disputes” which, it stresses, “has worsened”, leading the union to conclude “that easyJet’s ultimate aim is to prolong indefinitely the position it has adopted”.
In the same statement, the union claims that easyJet “has repeatedly resorted to replacing striking crew members with managers and colleagues from other countries in the network”, allowing it to operate flights that would otherwise be cancelled and, according to SNPVAC, effectively undermining the right to strike.
The October strike coincides with the long weekend around Portugal’s Republic Day public holiday on 5 October, which falls on a Monday this year. The December stoppage runs until two days before Christmas, when many people travel for leisure or return home for the festive season.