Air France shares slide as airline faces strike action
Air France shares are lower Wednesday, ahead of staff strike action for the airline, Thursday. Some Air France pilots and cabin crew members are striking after a number of Unions said they are unhappy with a pay deal offer from the firm.
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By 1240 BST, Air France shares were 0.50% lower at €10.02. The Air France stock has been on a generally lower trend since the beginning of 2018.
Staff striking over unacceptable pay deal
The strike was called earlier in February, as several pilot and cabin crew unions are unhappy with pay negotiations with Air France.
Air France has offered its staff a 1% pay rise. However, unions are calling for a 6% increase, to reflect higher living costs after recent rises have not been in line with that increase.
A number of prominent unions representing Air France pilots and cabin-crew, including the Syndicat National des Pilotes de Ligne (SNPL) pilots’ union and the Syndicat National du Personnel Navigant Commercial (SNPNC) cabin-crew union, said the current pay offer is “well below employees’ expectations.”
“Disruptions and delays are to be expected,” Air France said in a press release ahead of the planned strike action for February 22nd. “Air France regrets this situation and is making every effort to minimize the inconvenience this strike action may cause to its customers.”
Air France publishes strike day flight plan
One day ahead of the planned strikes, Air France has published its forecast of how many flights and customers it expects to be affected by the strikes.
The airline expects to run some 50% of its long-haul flights from Pair, 75% of its medium-haul journeys and around 85% of its shorter routes from the Charles de Gaulle airport.
“Air France recommends its customers with a flight reservation on 22 February to postpone their trip or change their ticket at no extra cost,” the airline said. It adds that almost 60,000 text message have been sent to customers advising them of the likely status of their flight on the day of the strike.
