EasyJet cancels nearly 100 flights in France as cabin crew strike over working conditions

EasyJet canceled at least 98 flights to and from France this weekend as cabin crew launched a two-day strike over working conditions, grounding roughly half of the airline’s scheduled services from major hubs including Paris, Nizza, Bordeaux and Lyon. The British low-cost carrier confirmed 47 cancellations on Saturday and 51 on Sunday, with affected routes primarily serving domestic French destinations and holiday spots in Portugal, Italy and North Africa.

The strike, organized by a coalition of unions including SNPNC-FO, UNPNC-CFDT and UNAC-CFE-CGC, follows more than a year of stalled negotiations over crew scheduling. Gaël Leloup, a delegate for the UNAC union, told BFMTV that management had “done nothing” despite workers participating in “dozens, even hundreds” of meetings. “We have done everything possible on our side to resolve this conflict,” Leloup said, adding that the lack of progress left staff with “no solution but to strike” .

Union representatives reported that 68% of the 340 cabin crew scheduled to work this weekend in France joined the walkout. William Bourdon of SNPNC-FO told AFP that crew members face up to 60 last-minute changes to their work schedules each week, with most adjustments notified only one to two days in advance. “The private life of the staff is extremely complicated to organize,” Bourdon said .

EasyJet stated it had informed affected passengers and offered free rebooking or refunds. The airline called the strike “opportunistic” for targeting one of the busiest travel weekends of the year, as families return from summer vacations. Company sources said they were “very disappointed” by the action, which they claimed came “outside any formal negotiation process” despite management proposals to address crew concerns. Negotiations are scheduled to resume in September, and the airline urged unions to suspend the strike .

French media reported that over 100 connections were scrapped, with more than half of EasyJet’s roughly 900 France-based cabin crew supporting the action . The airline’s website showed numerous flights unavailable for booking on Saturday .