Well, I should let a current AZ employee answer that. However, the union that called the strike (SdL) does not to my knowledge represent any pilots nor cabin crew. If you remember AZ pilots were represented by no less than seven unions, you can imagine how many there are across the airline as a whole!
I suspect many employees, wary that refusing to adhere to the new contracts signified foregoing the right to unemployment benefits (ah yes, government blackmail at its finest
), have reacted to the "sign the dotted line Jack or hit the road" ultimatum by signing and then digging in their heels.
Crazy perhaps, and certainly ineffectual, but like I say this whole "privatization" almost appears to have been specifically designed to irritate and frustrate employees, instead of instilling hope and faith in the incoming administration and encouraging loyalty and dedication to the new direction that needs to be taken. To a certain extent I think many staff are so furious, demoralized and wary of their new management that they are beyond caring.
To my mind it's all quite academic at this point... AZ is long dead. All I ask is for people to keep an open mind as to the causes of its demise, and pause for thought next time someone casually says, "ah yes, Alitalia, went bankrupt due to its staff, didn't it?"
