The British rail strike, which took place on Tuesday and Thursday, is the largest in the country in three decades, with workers demanding wage increases that do not keep pace with the highest rate of inflation in 40 years in the UK.
The RMT union, which called for the strike, had demanded a salary increase in line with inflation, but also deplored the prospect of “thousands of layoffs” and deteriorating working conditions.
Only one in five trains circulated and half the lines, according to traffic forecasts, were closed between 7:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m.
At Ryanair, several unions have requested a suspension of work since Friday in Spain, Portugal and Belgium, while strikes are expected to start in Italy and France on Saturday.
The “low-cost” airline said “less than 2% of its 3,000 flights scheduled” for Friday were affected by strikes called by crew unions, including in Portugal, by SNPVAC.
Only two Ryanair flights from Lisbon and Brussels were canceled on Saturday, according to Portuguese airports, but in Charleroi, only 41% of Ryanair flights were able to take off today, and between Friday and Sunday, the company plans to cancel 127 flights, according to a Belgian airport spokesman.
In addition, there was a three-day strike at Brussels Airlines that ended today, prompting the airline, a Lufthansa subsidiary, to cancel 60% of its flights, or about 300, since Thursday.
There were no cancellations during the morning in Spain, but the situation is expected to get worse over the weekend, according to the union.
In France, where the strike is set to last for two days (Saturday and Sunday), 20 flights in Marseille and 12 in Bordeaux were canceled today, according to the National Federation of Commercial Flight Attendants (SNPNC).
ANP // HB
Lusa / end
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