The strike at Italian airports caused nearly a thousand canceled flights

The strike of the ground staff and the staff of some airlines, which took place today in Italy between 10:00 a.m. local time (8:00 a.m. GMT) and 6:00 p.m. (4:00 p.m. GMT), caused the cancellation of hundreds of flights and affected 240,000 people, but it passed quietly after most passengers were notified to reschedule their trips.

According to the Italian media, at the end of the 8-hour strike, nearly a thousand flights were canceled at all Italian airports, about 150 between arrivals and departures at Malpensa and Linate airports in Milan (north) out of a total of 800 scheduled. , while there were also another 150 cancellations at the Fiumicino airport in Rome, one of the most affected.

At the Naples airport, 118 flights were cancelled: 59 arrivals and 59 departures, out of a total of 284 initially planned flights, indicated Gesac, the airport management company, while in Sardinia there were 50 trips, another 100 between Palermo and Catania , 30 in Turin and a hundred in Venice.

However, despite the fact that the adherence to the strike was very high and the numerous cancellations, there were no scenes of chaos at the airports and the day passed relatively calmly since the companies had previously announced the strike, which was called in June , and passengers could be relocated on the first useful flights and in some cases with larger aircraft.

The Ita Airways company announced this Thursday that 133 flights had been canceled for today and announced that it has activated an extraordinary plan by rebooking the first available flights to the greatest possible number of travelers involved in the cancellations and that 40% will be able to fly the same day of the strike.

The strike was called by ground workers at Italian airports to protest against the lack of renewal of the employment contract and wages that are too low.

To these will have to be added some of the flights of the EasyJet company, which announced that it is canceling 1,700 flights during the summer months, 134 in Italy, and also the strike this Friday of the Malta Air company pilots and staff of the Spanish airline Vueling, affiliated with the Italian syndicate Filt CGIL “due to the company’s lack of will to develop healthy and constructive labor relations with the union organization that most represents the needs of the company’s workers”.

The Italian consumer association, Codacons, filed complaints throughout Italy for investigations into airport disturbances in cases of interruption of public service.

Italian Transport Minister Matteo Salvini also weighed in on today’s strike: “Nobody questions the right to strike, I support the just demands of the workers who have not been heard for years, I work because the negotiations continue: but I do not accept that some unions blockade Italy causing inconvenience and damage to millions of Italian workers and foreign tourists” .

“If common sense does not prevail, I am ready to intervene as I have already done to prevent the total blockade of trains”Salvini said in reference to his intervention to reduce the hours of the strike last Friday for the rail service.

Source: EFE