Press lunch invitation: Ryanair crew summit

June 25, 2018

In two weeks, Ryanair cabin crew from across Europe and North Africa will come together in Dublin to voice their grievances and formulate a charter of demands. If these demands are not met, the company risks a summer of industrial action.

You are invited to attend a press lunch on 4 July to hear from workers directly about their demands and the possibility of strikes over the summer.
Cabin Crew United will be holding the summit in the office of the Irish trade union Fórsa on 3-4 July.

Please join us for a press conference at 11:30 on 4 July, where the charter of demands will be unveiled and Ryanair cabin crew will be available for comment. This will be followed by lunch.

After years of ignoring complaints from its workers, in December 2017 Ryanair finally announced that it would recognise trade unions. However, six months on there has been little progress from the company. The first of its kind, the summit will bring together cabin crew to ensure that the company keeps to its word.

Conditions at Ryanair have been heavily criticised over the last few years, with the range of issues highlighted including poverty pay, draconian disciplinary procedures, unachievable sales targets and staff having to pay for items that most decent employers provide.

Last week, the company signed a recognition deal with Unite covering all UK-based cabin crew it directly employs. While this represents a major step forwards, Ryanair has yet to provide any concrete improvement in pay and conditions for any workers across its network. This also follows a breach of Italian labour law by the company in attempting to dictate to workers which union should represent them.

It is clear that Ryanair has a long way to go before it wins a reputation as a good employer. If the company does not begin to negotiate with unions in good faith and deliver real improvements for workers across its network, it risks a summer of industrial action. It also remains possible that pilots and ground crew will join cabin crew in striking for fair pay and conditions.

If you are able to attend the press lunch, or have any questions about the campaign for a better deal at Ryanair, please get in touch with James Bartholomeusz at the International Transport Workers’ Federation at bartholomeusz_james@itf.org.uk or on +44 (0) 7715 074 293.

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