Yahoo Finance Ryanair warns it could cut jobs amid threats of strike action
Ryanair warned it could cut jobs and reduce flights out of airports disrupted by flight action as it reported a slump in profits.
The budget airline said it had cancelled some flights to minimise disruption after it was hit by two “unnecessary” strikes by Irish pilots and threatened with walk-outs by cabin crew in Spain, Portugal and Belgium.
It added: “We expect further strikes over the peak summer period as we are not prepared to concede to unreasonable demands that will compromise either our low fares or our highly efficient model.”
The warning came as Ryanair reported a 20pc drop in profits after tax to €319m (£284m) for the three months to June as it counted the cost of higher pilot salaries and a surge in fuel prices.
It expects its annual fuel bill to be as much as €430m higher than last year after prices rose from $50 (£38) per barrel this time last year to almost $80 per barrel now. Staff costs jumped by a third after Ryanair gave its pilots a 20pc pay rise and boosted non-flight staff salaries by 3pc.
Revenues rose 9pc to €2bn thanks to higher passenger numbers and a hike in “ancillary” sales, such as seat bookings and priority boarding. But average fares dropped 4pc to less than €39 amid tough competition, which Ryanair said would most likely continue.
Ryanair reaffirmed its full-year profit guidance of €1.25bn to €1.35bn but warned LaudaMotion, the small Austrian airline it is in the process of acquiring, would shoulder losses of €150m, up from a previous estimate of €100m.
