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Air France flight crew shout slogans as they gather next to the company headquarters during a demonstration in Tremblay-en-France, outside Paris, Wednesday, April 11, 2018. About 30 percent of Air France flights scheduled on Wednesday are expected to be canceled as flight crews and ground staff started a seventh day of strike. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena) |
Associated Press
PARIS
Striking Air France pilots and cabin staff insisted they weren’t backing down, as their latest walkout forced the cancellation of some 30 percent of the airline’s flights worldwide Wednesday.
Union members protested at Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport, where screens showed “cancelled” notices next to multiple flights.
Staff want 6 percent pay raises, after seven years of salary freezes as the company went through restructuring to stem losses. The airline argues that such pay rises would threaten the turnaround effort.
Sophie Gorins, general secretary of the SNPNC flight crew union, said “we won’t stop the conflict unless they give us the 6 percent.”
Several meetings between workers’ representatives and Air France management have already taken place since the strike started on Feb. 22 but unions say they have not yet received a satisfactory reply to their demands.
The company has lost more than 100 million euros ($ 124 million) in sporadic strikes since February. The Air France actions are coming amid other French labor action.
