Airbus Workers Downed Tools to Fight Job Cuts

Thousands of French and German aerospace workers staged rallies to protest against 10,000 job cuts at European planemaker Airbus on Friday, accusing governments and industry of ignoring their plight.

Protesters waved flags, blew whistles, played rock music and in some cases paraded with children in front of Airbus facilities, including those put up for sale as part of its response to delays to its A380 super jumbo project.

In France, the anger came hard on the heels of similar protests over 1,500 job losses at French-American technology firm Alcatel Lucent, with the question of how to save high-skilled jobs dominating the country’s election campaign.
Airbus says it must urgently save cash to compensate for a weak dollar, which benefits rival Boeing, and boost market hopes for its next model, the mid-sized A350.

Like several senior managers, French and German unions had squabbled along national lines over responsibility for wiring problems which left the A380 double-decker aircraft running two years late.
Police in the northern German city, where Airbus has one of two assembly lines, said the protest drew 8,000 to 10,000 people. Workers downed tools at times at all Airbus German sites. In Toulouse, where the other Airbus assembly line includes final construction of the A380, an estimated 7,000 people stopped work at Airbus and its suppliers.

Airbus workers in Germany have a no-strike deal linked to a multi-year pay accord, according to company officials, but have promised to tear it up if Airbus forces through redundancies.
In Spain and Britain, which have a smaller share of Airbus construction work, protests were relatively muted, although 500 workers reportedly went on strike in Toledo, central Spain. In Britain, workers staged protests during the lunch break.