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THE INDEPENDENT ENGLISH LANGUAGE NEWSPAPER WITH LOCAL, NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL NEWS
EDITION 633
FRIDAY 30th AUGUST TO THURSDAY 12th SEPTEMBER 2019 MOVIES AT ...
EATING OUT & ABOUT
PAGES PA 25 - 27
Your dining experience aroundd our o restaurants
PAGES 39 -48
FORTNIGHTLY SUPPLEMENT NT
property
guide
FEARS FOR 512 JOBS
AS RYANAIR CONFIRM “DEVASTATING” BASE CLOSURES Strikes over Tenerife south, Gran Canaria and Lanzarote decision
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YANAIR has confirmed the news unions were dreading. The low-cost airline will close its bases in Tenerife south, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote and Girona in January. The company is now preparing a collective dismissal of the 512 employees at these airports, according to officials with the USO. The union had already called strike action in anticipation of the announcement which came last Friday. In an email to the staff, Ryanair confirmed the bases will close on Januar y 8th, 2020. To date, the unions, USO and Sictpla, which represent Ryanair’s passenger cabin (TCP) crew, had planned a strike for days September 1, 2, 6, 8, 13, 15, 20, 22, 27 and 29 to try to avoid closing those bases. Organisation secretary of USO Ryanair, Jairo Gonzalo said: “Confirmation of the intentions of the Irish low-cost airline has occurred while the unions and management negotiated the minimum services for these ten days of strikes.” The union has estimated at 512 the possible layoffs that would be carried out if the closure of the Ryanair facilities were carried out, since among cabin crew and pilots there are 164 employees in Girona, 156 in Tenerife south, 110 in Gran Canaria and 82 in Lanzarote In the email sent to Ryanair employees, the company justifies these closures due to delays in the delivery of Max aircraft, the effects of a possible ‘hard’ Brexit and the
41% decrease in profits in the first four months of the year with respect to two years ago. In addition, in the letter signed by Human Resources Manager Lisa McCormack, the airline says it will tr y to “minimise job losses” as a result of such closures through “transfers.” The USO union claims Ryanair is “dismantling” its bases in Spain because applying Spanish labour legislation “is more expensive than hiring new crews” through other companies where conditions are “more precarious.” Sr. Gonzalo says that “closures and dismissals are not justified” and that the Irish company will have to give explanations to the Spanish authorities. USO has called on the administration to force Ryanair to comply with the law and have described the situation as “teasing. They have also asked the Ministry of Development to decide on the minimum services for the ten day strikes planned in September, after not reaching an agreement. Talks broke down after more than seven hours of meeting at the Interconfederal Mediation and Arbitration Service (SIMA). The strikes have been called for all 13 Ryanair bases in Spain. A Ryanair spokesperson said: “As announced on 16th
July, due to the late delivery of up to 30 Boeing MAX aircraft this winter a number of Ryanair
bases will be cut or closed this winter. These consultations are taking place with our people
at affected bases currently. No routes will be affected as they will be served by flights from
other bases from November when the winter schedule starts.”
HEARTBROKEN FAMILY ISSUE SPECIAL THANKYOU
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HE family of a 17-year-old girl who died in a tragic accident whilst on holiday in Tenerife have thanked the generosity of fund-raisers who raised more than 10,000 pounds to fly her body back to the UK.
Leah Wilson from Somerset, described as “beautiful, bright and full of dreams”, is understood to have drowned in a villa pool. She may have hit her head or chin whilst diving in. Her heartbroken family and friends launched an appeal to help with repatriation and funeral costs and were stunned when the money was raised in a matter of days. They say: “Leah was only 17, she was loved by so many people and will be so sadly missed. The funds will go straight towards bringing her home, but anything more will go towards the funeral and any other expenses the family will need to cover. We would like to say thank you to each and ever yone of you who has supported us, Leah’s loved ones, through this difficult time. You have all been so generous and we cannot be more grateful.”