The spokesperson for the Binter Canarias Workers' Committee in the province of Las Palmas, Prudencio Monje, confirmed to this newsroom that the "different breaches by the company" have led the workers to opt for strike action as a means of pressure. One of the main reasons for the protest, which aims to ground the planes, is the paralysis of the collective agreement, "which we have been without negotiating for more than eight months."
The stoppages begin on November 1 and will be carried out successively every Friday, Sunday and Monday until December 5, with the possibility of extending them during the last month of the year. As with the Iberia case, the workers denounce that Binter does not comply with the resolutions of the Labor Inspectorate.
According to the union representative, the company practices "labor lending" to save personnel costs.
Interns and temporary staff
Thus, the employees do not understand how Binter continues to hire temporary staff and bring in interns while saying that it has too much staff, thus justifying the transfer of a large part of the workforce to Atlántica de Handling, a subsidiary of the regional airline. For example, in Lanzarote Binter no longer has workers because the four who worked on the Island voluntarily relocated to Atlántica de Handling. In other words, Binter officially has no workers in Lanzarote and the Workers' Committee blames this for "the service being a disaster." The promoters of the strike claim that the staff is very sensitive to the issue and hope that the follow-up of the protest will lead to strong incidents in the Archipelago.
Strategic issues
"Binter Canarias is raising strategic issues about the future of the company and the workers' representation is completely unaware of what the company's future plan is," said the union representative. Monje denounced that the Workers' Committee's assertive position towards Binter's management has resulted in the dismissal of three company workers, including a member of the Committee.
The strike will affect approximately 500 workers from the Binter Canarias workforce in all the airports of the Archipelago and the approximately 120 and 140 flights that the company offers daily.
They present the connection with Milan
Around twenty media outlets and tour operators from Milan received with expectation this Tuesday the new regular route that will connect, from October 24, the Italian city with the Canary Islands.
The presentation was made by Andreas Blass, general manager of Binter in the Ice Park of Milan. He was accompanied by the representative of the Spanish Tourism Office in Milan, Sergio Maccanti; by the director of Bergamo airport, Francesco Fassini; and by the general sales agent of Binter in Milan, Interplanet, Manlio Olivero.
Maccanti described the new regular route as a "historic event." He said that the Canary Islands have been a tourist destination with certain bumps for Italians: "we hope that with the entry of Binter it will become a stable market for the Canary Islands. They have our full support," said Maccanti.
The director of Bergamo airport gave a summary of the characteristics of the airport facility to highlight the importance of a direct connection with the Canary Islands two days a week.
For his part, the general manager of Binter pointed out the main lines of the company's management: Safety, Quality and High presentation of Services to customers. He also highlighted the interest of the Canarians in visiting Milan, an attractive destination for shopping and winter sports. A group of Italian journalists will visit the Canary Islands from November 8 to 10, invited by the tourism boards and Binter.
