The airline is carrying out a restructuring plan providing for the loss of 3,000 jobs to cushion the shock of the pandemic.
Irish airline Ryanair has announced the fall of its Frankfurt base in Germany after pilots refused to agree to cut wages. More closures are expected to follow in the country.
Ryanair, which is leading a restructuring plan providing for the loss of 3,000 jobs to cushion the shock of the pandemic, unveiled its decision in a memo sent Tuesday, July 21, to its pilots based in Germany: “[The pilots union] VC voted for job cuts and base closings when they could have saved all jobs.”
Rejection of a 20% pay cut for four years!
The company did not say how many jobs were affected by the closure of its Frankfurt base, which will take effect on November 1. Ryanair adds that the closures of its bases in Berlin-Tegel and Düsseldorf are now likely before winter.
In a vote, the German pilots’ union VC overwhelmingly rejected the company’s proposal to accept a 20% wage cut for four years. In a statement, the organization said Ryanair’s proposals would have been “damaging” to the working conditions of pilots and said the job protection guarantees were not sufficient.
Unlike their German counterparts, British Ryanair pilots have accepted the 20% wage cut, which should allow them to save 260 jobs out of the 330 threatened.
Ryanair adds that the closures of its bases in Berlin Tegel and Düsseldorf are now likely before winter.
In a statement, the VC union estimated that Ryanair’s proposals would have been “damaging” to the working conditions of pilots and believes that job preservation guarantees were not sufficient.