Italian flight attendants strip clothing to protest job conditions
Italian flight attendants are stripping their clothes away to protest layoffs and decreases in pay amid the launch of Italy's new airline.
Roughly 50 former flight attendants from Alitalia gathered around the square outside of the Campidoglio in Rome to protest job losses and pay cuts, CNN reported. The protesters gathered in their Alitalia uniforms and then proceeded to strip down to their underwear, chanting "We are Alitalia."
ETIHAD BUYS 49 PERCENT OF LOSS-MAKING ALITALIA
In August, Alitalia Airlines announced that starting on Aug. 25, all flights after Oct. 15 would be canceled due to the company going bankrupt. The airline completed its final round of flights on Oct. 14.
Italy announced the launch of the new national airline, ITA Airways, on Oct. 15, revealing the logo and completing the first round of flights. The airline will retain roughly 2,800 of the 10,500 Alitalia employees, as well as 52 out of the 110 planes, according to the outlet.
The European Commission for the European Union announced on Sept. 10 that it would be approving a €1.35 billion ($1.57 billion) injection of funds into the new airline.
The protest was described by ITA Airways President Alfredo Altavilla as "a thing of national shame," comparing the employees making threats of a strike over unfair working conditions to drivers continuously looking through their backseat mirror, according to the outlet.
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Alitalia's end marked the conclusion of a decadeslong battle with bankruptcy. The airline filed for bankruptcy in 2017, placing the airline under emergency administration.
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Tags: News, Italy, Bankruptcy, airlines, Protests
Original Author: Elizabeth Faddis
Original Location: Italian flight attendants strip clothing to protest job conditions
