By dint of investigating the twelve consecutive hours of work and getting up at 3 a.m., the air hostesses, stewards, pilots, co-pilots and captains of the low-cost company Volotea are over, they say. , by losing sleep. And perhaps also the notion of day and night?
It is in any case from 4:30 am that they settled at the entrance to Nantes-Atlantique airport, this Saturday April 16, Easter weekend and departures during school holidays. They plan to stay there for a good part of the day.
A first
Clearly visible under the full moon, with signs and braziers. “We had never occupied this roundabout”, explain a group of young air hostesses, who however wish to remain anonymous.
Besides, we won’t see a face in the photos. All fear reprisals from management. In particular on their work schedules, which are already difficult to bear, they explain.
To note : Volotea appeared on Tuesday, April 5, before the Nantes police court for 76 flight time violations and 89 rest time violations. A procedure at the initiative of the labor inspectorate.
Tears
On the roundabout, the air hostesses tell of their permanent exhaustion. Their crying spells, often. Their anxieties of not being up to their security mission with travelers, because of a vigilance blunted by fatigue.
The pilots, too, confide their stress generated by the infernal schedules, “eleven hours of service in a row, five days in a row. Followed by only two days of break. And then we do it again, another five days. » Such a rhythm repeating itself for weeks.
End of April
This Easter weekend, part of the cabin crew of the low cost airline is on strike, at the call of the national union of airline pilots (SNPL) and the union of flight personnel.
They are already warning that they will do it again on Saturday April 23 and Sunday April 24.
The straw that broke the camel’s back was Volotea’s desire to further reduce the salaries of its staff: “We are already the lowest paid airlines, protests a pilot from Nantes. The beginner co-pilot, here, he starts at minimum wage! We are 30% below market prices. »
On the roundabout, a large white banner warns: “Your security at the price of minimum wage. »
Inspection
Several planes took off with delay, this Saturday, April 16. Because of the strike? Not necessarily, because according to the staff present on site, there were mainly technical breakdowns.
Around 6 a.m., the labor inspectorate came to carry out checks to verify that the service personnel on board had been hired in the rules. And that the company was not hijacking the strike. Investigations are ongoing.