MALPENSA – “As basic unions (Cub Trasporti, Adl, Usb and Flai), we will ask companies to apply the same contractual improvements signed with Alha and Wfs to all handling workers at Malpensa and Linate airports.” At the top of the priorities is more money in the paycheck. On the eve of the meeting at the prefecture, scheduled for tomorrow, January 12th, Renzo Canavesi (Cub Trasporti) anticipates the contents of the requests that the social parties will submit to the four handling companies present at the table (Airport handling, Aviapartner, Ags and Mle) that have not yet signed second-level agreements to align airport workers’ salaries with the current cost of living.
The meeting with the prefect
The mediation of the prefect of Varese, Salvatore Pasquariello, and his staff was decisive not only in suspending the 24-hour strike that was planned for last January 8th but above all in finding a solution that brings calm back to the airport after months of continuous strikes and disruptions. “We know that companies will resist our demands,” says Canavesi, “but if all workers and unions, including CGIL, CISL, UIL, and UGL, stand together, it will be possible to achieve this important result and even improve it with more one-time payments and substantial company welfare. For years, airport workers’ salaries have been decreasing in purchasing power, and workers are leaving Malpensa and Linate in search of better-paid jobs. Together, we can reverse this trend desired by airlines and airport operators.”
One hundred euros more
The unions will try to replicate with Airport handling, Aviapartner, Ags, and Mle the historic second-level agreement reached last December 21st with Wfs and Alha, which from January 1st will anticipate the increases in the contract and the entire attendance allowance from 2024. In addition, the bonuses will be calculated on the real salary and not on the wages of 2016. “With these agreements, a worker at Alha and Wfs will receive on average over 100 euros more per month than a worker at Airport, Mle, Aviapartner, Ags, and Swissport,” emphasizes Cub. “As basic unions, we will ask companies to apply the same contractual improvements signed with Alha and Wfs to all handling workers at Malpensa and Linate.”
