Flight attendant claims Ryanair demanded she sell more in-flight snacks to move closer to sick gran

A RYANAIR flight attendant has claimed that the airline demanded she hit higher sales targets before relocating her near her sick grandmother.

Cabin crew member Giulia says she requested to be moved from the Sicily base near her elderly relative in Pisa 12 times, but each time she was denied.

The 28 year old told that she was told to sell more snacks and scratch cards to passengers if she wanted to be moved, because requests were based on sales performance.

Another cabin crew member told the newspaper that they were sometimes paid for two hours out of an eight-hour work day.

In addition, the staff were required to use a range of tactics to improve the number of inflight sales, like keeping the cabin temperature cold and the lights bright.

The revelations came off the back of an investigation by the Mail this week where it was claimed that some cabin crew were being paid as little as £3.75 an hour, and made to work up to five hours' unpaid overtime a day.

The airline’s work conditions mean that flight attendants only earn money when the plane is in the air - so all groundwork, like check-in and aircraft cleaning, goes unpaid.

According to a new investigation by the Mail, new cabin crew hired through third-person agencies only make £11,000 in their first year.

On top of that, they are allegedly asked to pay £2,150 towards their training and a £25 monthly fee for their uniforms in their first year.

Employees can also be paid as little as £3.75 an hour when they are on ‘airport standby days’.

The airline told the newspaper that the staff were paid above the minimum wage when these days are included with staff’s commission from sales on planes and their time in the air.

The news comes at a time when Ryanair pilots are already engaged in a battle with their employers concerning their rights.

At the weekend, unions representing Ryanair pilots in Ireland and Portugal suspended plans to strike before Christmas after the airline agreed on Friday to recognise trade unions for the first time.

Ireland's Impact trade union and Portugal's SPAC announced the cancellation of 24-hour strikes due to take place on Wednesday after Ryanair agreed to recognise the unions as the representatives of pilots in the two countries.

Italy's ANPAC on Friday also suspended plans to strike.

While the decision to recognise trade unions for the first time in Ryanair's 32-year history has averted the threat of strikes, the move rattled investors and its shares fell almost 9 per cent
on Friday.

In addition to union recognition, pilot unions have been seeking an overhaul of the airline's system of contracts and collective bargaining.

Sun Online has contacted Ryanair for a comment.