FRANCE: A strike by French airport security contractors spreads to several hubs in France, raising the spectre of delays and cancellations for thousands of seasonal travellers

Record ID: 340583

  • Title: FRANCE: A strike by French airport security contractors spreads to several hubs in France, raising the spectre of delays and cancellations for thousands of seasonal travellers
  • Date: 21st December 2011
  • Summary: SLATE INFORMATION
  • Embargoed: 5th January 2012 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: France, France
  • Country: France
  • Topics: Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA73UQDPQDO1BGTJXTWVU4SBGMG
  • Story Text: Striking airline security contractors demonstrated in Paris' main Charles de Gaulle airport on Friday (December 20) on the fifth day of a protest over pay and conditions that has spread to several major hubs in France and which threatens delays and long queues for hundreds of thousands of seasonal travellers.
    Escorted by riot police, the demonstrators marched through one of the main terminals in the airport chanting, blowing whistles and waving flags as the government raise pressure on employers to find a solution to the dispute.
    Two government-appointed mediators were due to start work on Friday to try and help find a compromise to lift the threat of delays and cancellations.
    Security checks were performed by non-striking employees assisted by other personnel drafted in to help keep passengers moving. And while most flights left, passengers faced long lines.
    "We're not happy of course. If you travel a lot, you don't like it. You never like it. You want to go home to the family," said one passenger.
    Another added: "It bothers us. I don't really understand it. It's always during the holidays. We're grandparents, we want to see the grandchildren. It's at times like this when families can get together that we can't, because there's a strike."
    Other airports affected by the stoppages included Nice, France's second largest, and Lyon, where all flights were cancelled earlier this week. Civil aviation authorities said most flights were leaving with only minor delays.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2011. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
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