Ryanair's Spanish cabin crew union plans weekly strikes until January

MADRID (Reuters) - Ryanair's Spanish cabin crew union members plan strikes on four days of every week until January to press demands for higher pay and better working conditions, a leader of the USO union said on Wednesday.

The strike action, which is also backed by the SITCPLA union, will take place from Monday to Thursday during every week from Aug. 8 to Jan.7, it said in a statement.

Ryanair played down the likely impact of the strike action and said it expected minimal disruption in Spain this winter.

"Recent strikes by USO/SITCPLA have been poorly supported with minimal effect," it said in a statement.

Ryanair workers caused disruption at many Spanish airports during July, when they walked out for several days, mainly at weekends.

However, the number of cancelled flights was limited compared to other countries where Ryanair staff have also gone on strike as Spanish regulations require airlines and staff to maintain a minimum service.

"As the company has been unable to listen to the workers, we have been forced to call new strike days," said Lidia Aransanz, a leader for USO's Ryanair section.

The unions are demanding 22 days of holiday and two extra months payment per year to comply with Spanish legislation, she added.

The union said 11 cabin staff in Spain were fired during the recent strikes.

Ryanair accounted for 22.3% of passengers travelling via Spanish airports during the first half of this year, data from airport operator Aena showed.

(Reporting by Inti Landauro, Corina Pons, Christina Thykjaer, Yann Morell y Alcover; editing by John Stonestreet and Gareth Jones)