Sun, Nov 08 2009

Bourgas airport employees protest against job uncertainties

Tue, Nov 04 2008 18:03 CET 305 Views
Bourgas airport employees protest against job uncertainties

About 100 airport employees from the Black Sea city of Bourgas staged a silent protest against Fraport Twin Star Airport Management, on November 4 2008, Bulgarian Focus news agency said.

Employees were protesting against their uncertain future, Stoicho Minchev from KNSB trade union told Focus. Earlier in the day Bulgarian-language Dnevnik daily said that employees were protesting against cuts in staff salaries. According to Dnevnik, every Friday workers were receiving letters informing them about who would be dismissed the following Monday.

Dnevnik said the process had begun two weeks ago. Salaries have also declined markedly as well as all other incentives for food, clothing and night shifts.

At the protest, however, Focus found it difficult to talk to employees who refused to comment on why they were outside the administration building. At the time of the protest Fraport Twin Star Airport Management's board was in session discussing the new framework agreement that has to be signed with trade unions, Minchev said. The current agreement expires on November 10 2008.

The concessionaire was suggesting keeping the current level of salaries, 990 leva a month on average for Bourgas airport, but cutting bonuses. "Nothing has been decided yet," Minchev told Focus and noted that on November 6 trade unions will discuss with their members how to proceed in negotiations.

Bulgarian-German consortium Fraport Twin Star Airport Management won the 35-year concession on managing the airports at the two Black Sea cities of Varna and Bourgas in 2007 when it pledged to invest 403 million euro towards their modernisation.

In September 2008 the consortium said that the two airports would have new passenger terminals by 2011. The terminals will cost more than 65 million euro, more than half of which, 36 million euro, will be spent on Bourgas Airport.

An additional 26 million euro will be spent on Varna Airport and seven million euro will go towards design and project management.

Fraport Twin Star Airport Management said that Bourgas Airport would have a larger and more expensive terminal because of larger tourist numbers and the greater bed capacity of the southern Black Sea coast.

The airport serviced 1.6 million passengers in the first eight months of 2008. Fraport will launch a procedure to select the main contractor by the end of September, with construction set to start in mid-2009.

Write comment

Name:Comment:

Generate new code
Send your comment
Emergency landing of passenger aircraft from Hungarian Malev

It is the same type of plane that crashed near Buffalo, New York, killing 50 people on February 12.

Bourgas and Varna airports report rise of traffic for Q1

Varna and Burgas aiports recorded a marked increase in passenger numbers, in Bourgas' case thanks to inauguration of thrice-weekly route to London

Design of administrative centre for the new Bourgas airport is ready

The large administrative centre is part of major construction works surrounding Bourgas airport that will see a new terminal, thorough reconstruction of infrastructure, the demolition of existing buildings and the construction of a new administrative centre.

More in this category

Influenza update: Sofia schools suspend classes

Kindergartens to be dealt with on a case-by-case basis and universities to decide for themselves whether to suspend classes.

Sliven police capture illegal immigrants bound for Greece

Five illegal immigrants from Iran and Iraq caught by Bulgarian police in Sliven.

Deputy head of veterinary service arrested on bribery charge

Leonid Lavchev sent an intermediary to collect 1000 leva from a dairy farm in Haskovo, investigators say

Former cabinet minister investigated for alleged embezzlement, malfeasance

Former labour minister Emilia Maslarova follows the example of Socialist party leader and former prime minister, Sergei Stanishev, in requesting that her MP immunity is lifted

Influenza update: sixth death in Bulgaria, Sofia schools face suspended classes

Health Minister: Influenza strain is not seasonal flu, it is swine flu. More than 100 000 Bulgarians are down with the H1N1 strain.