The Ryanair strikes are set to start in just a few short days. They will last for months, causing untold chaos to planned holidays to Spain across the Christmas period
As the UK is caught between rail strikes that are causing massive disruption across the country, Ryanair Spain has confirmed strikes in the coming days.
These latest strikes come after Ryanair crews in Spain walked out earlier this month.
Following this, a Ryanair spokesperson said: "Ryanair has recently reached an agreement with the main Spanish CCOO [Workers' Commissions] union on pay, rosters and allowances for its Spanish cabin crew.
"Recent strikes by USO/SITCPLA have been poorly supported with minimal effect.
"Ryanair has operated over 45,000 flights to/from Spain over the last three months with less than 1% affected by crewing and Ryanair expects minimal (if any) disruption this winter."
It seems the unions have reached an impasse with the airline again though, as the strikes will last for far longer this time.
When are the Ryanair strikes?
The Ryanair strikes will begin on August 8 and will last until January 7, 2023.
Overall, the strikes will last for five months, a devastating amount of time for any travellers hoping to take a trip over to Spain.
It will cover the tail end of the summer season, through to the Christmas period.
As it is just Ryanair Spanish crews taking part, other flights around the world will be unaffected.
Why are Ryanair crews striking?
The strikes are backed by two union groups: the USO and Sitclpa.
They are demanding 22 days of holiday and two extra months payment per year in accordance with Spanish legislation.
Lidia Aransanz, a leader for USO's Ryanair section, said: "As the company has been unable to listen to the workers, we have been forced to call new strike days.”
During the earlier strikes this month, the union said that 11 cabin staff members were fired.
Are there other airline strikes coming up?
Yes, from July 29 to July 31 easyJet's Spanish staff are striking with over 450 members expected to take part in the walkout, in a dispute over pay.
British Airways pilots are also threatening to strike over pay cuts over the last couple of years.
Thy have taken a 20% salary cut since 2020 which was in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
An official strike hasn’t been confirmed, so there are no planned dates for a walkout.
