Iberia employees protest planned lay-offs

Thousands of striking employees of Spain’s flagship airline Iberia have demonstrated in Madrid to protest the company’s plan to lay off a large number of workers.

The workers, carrying flags and signs reading “British go home” and “Iberia is Spanish,” marched from the company’s headquarters in the capital to the transport ministry on Thursday to protest against management’s plans to cut 3,800 jobs following its merger with British Airways.

In an attempt to reduce costs, Iberia merged with British Airways in 2011 to form the International Airlines Group (IAG).

Iberia’s workers, however, accuse the airline’s management of betraying them and selling off the pride of Spanish aviation to foreign interests.

Cabin crew, ground staff, and maintenance workers began a second five-day strike against the planned job cuts and salary reductions on Monday.

Airline staff started the first of three five-day strikes on February 18-22 with plans to start its third and last part of the strike on March 18-22.

Unions have threatened to stage an open-ended strike unless Iberia backs down on its plans.

Strikes and protests over the past few days have forced Iberia to cancel hundreds of flights. More cancellations are expected to cause severe disruption to travel plans.

The Spanish government has also been sharply criticized over the austerity measures that are hitting the middle and working classes the hardest.

Public protests have grown in the country over speculation that the government will seek a Greek-style European bailout to keep its borrowing costs in check.

The eurozone’s fourth-largest economy must lower its deficit to 4.5 percent in 2013, and 2.8 percent in 2014. Economists, however, say those targets will be difficult to meet amid poor prospects for the country’s economic recovery.

Battered by the global financial downturn, the Spanish economy collapsed into recession in the second half of 2008, taking with it millions of jobs.