Strikes loom after pilot union breaks off pay talks with ‘uncooperative’ Ryanair

The company representatives had shown themselves to be extremely uncooperative in the negotiations and had not appeared at agreed meetings, a VC spokesman said on Wednesday.

Now there is the threat of strikes at the German bases of Europe's largest low-cost airline, which is also embroiled in disputes with the pilots in its home country Ireland. The VC has already initiated a strike ballot among its members in response to the collapse of talks.

Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary has previously rejected all forms of negotiations with unions, preferring to deal with pilots representatives within the company. He has also previously described the VC as “Lufthansa's union.”

With its more than 9,400 members in Germany, VC was able to squeeze a pay, pensions and jobs deal out of mammoth carrier Lufthansa in 2017, after repeated walkouts between 2014 and 2016 cost the group around €450 million.

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