Seven flights cancelled in Malaga on first day of Easyjet crew strike

Seven Easyjet flights have been cancelled at Malaga Airport on the first day of the three-day, crew strike, which started on Wednesday. The flights in question were destined for Geneva, Manchester, Zurich, Leeds, Rabat, Nice and Bristol, as confirmed by the company and the USO union, which called the strike with respect to cabin crew's demands to have their salaries matching those at other European Easyjet bases.

The protesters gathered at Terminal 3, where USO president for Malaga Miguel Galán denounced the "abusive" payment conditions, which affect Easyjet's Costa del Sol crew.

According to USO, "the basic salary in Spain for cabin crew is 14,067 euros. In addition to this, 75% of the workforce is permanent, with only nine months of activity and a base salary of 10,500 per year. Spain is the only country in Easyjet's operational network where these figures are produced with three seasonal bases". Furthermore, the union said that, "if we compare salaries in Spain with the rest of the countries where the airline operates, we find significant salary differences ranging from 18,214 euros in Portugal to 43,516 euros in Switzerland. In other countries, this difference in remuneration exceeds 35% in Italy; 67% in the UK; and 93% in the Netherlands".

As protesters stated, the increase in the cost of living in Spain and Europe has not changed Spanish wages, which are still around the minimum liveable wage. "The situation is especially aggravated if we consider that Easyjet's workplaces in Spain are in four of the most expensive cities to rent or buy housing, not to mention the severe crisis in the real estate sector with ever higher prices and the scarce supply of annual rentals."

Galán spoke for the protesters, who are asking for the salary increase to be equal to the one in Portugal and Italy (30%), instead of the 19.45% promised over three years by the company. The strike will continue on Thursday and Friday.

According to AirCashBack, which defends passengers' rights, those who have been affected by the strike "are entitled to compensation of between 250 and 600 euros, depending on the length of the delay and the distance of the flight", as well as in the case that the flight is cancelled.