Alitalia slashing 100 flights a day

Alitalia will scrap 100 flights a day until the end of November due to ongoing wildcat strikes by pilots and flight attendants, the airline's bankruptcy administrator said in an interview published Tuesday.

Some Alitalia workers have been causing havoc for over a week with unannounced protests against a plan to sell the carrier to a group of Italian investors.

The company said pilots and flight attendants have been applying job rules strictly or calling in sick, causing delays and forcing hundreds of cancellations.

Alitalia's government-appointed administrator, Augusto Fantozzi, was quoted as saying by La Repubblica daily that the protests were costing Alitalia "millions" of euros each day. The bankrupt carrier is already losing some 2 million euros ($2.5 million) a day.

Fantozzi said Alitalia will cut 100 of its 600 daily trips until the end of the month, when the deal for the airline's sale is expected to be closed.

The administrator stressed that passengers would be reimbursed or put on other flights, and urged travelers to check their trip's status on Alitalia's Web site.

An Alitalia spokesman declined to comment or confirm the figures.

Protesting unions maintain Alitalia is also to blame for the chaos, saying the company is purposely cutting flights to save money.

A group of investors led by Roberto Colaninno, the chairman of scooter-maker Piaggio, has offered to take over Alitalia's profitable assets in a deal worth 1 billion euros ($1.25BN). They plan to scale down on routes and personnel, combining the new Alitalia with Air One, Italy's No. 2 carrier.

The protests began when contract negotiations with some unions broke down. The investors have said they plan to bypass reluctant unions, offering pilots and other crew members individual contracts.

Source : NYTimes
[tags : recession bankrupt collapse retrenchment financial news collapse stagnation economic]

Starbucks says to close 61 Australian stores

Starbucks Corp plans to shut 61 of its 85 coffee shops in Australia and focus its remaining operations on three major cities, the U.S. company said on Tuesday, as part of a major belt-tightening program.

The Seattle-based chain, facing a U.S. consumer slowdown, higher food costs and more competition, had said this month it would close 600 unprofitable outlets in the United States but would continue its expansion in international markets.

Starbucks Chief Executive Howard Schultz portrayed the Australian move as a refocus of operations, not a retreat.

"We are well into the implementation phase of transforming Starbucks and we believe this difficult, yet necessary, decision to close stores in Australia will help support the continued growth of our international business," he said in a statement.

Starbucks first opened in Australia in 2000 as part of a rapid global expansion, but faced a highly competitive market with a well-entrenched coffee culture in the major cities.

The company said it would now refocus its operations on the cities of Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.

Gourmet coffee shops are already a common feature in Sydney and Melbourne, Australia's two biggest cities, where a cosmopolitan cafe culture has thrived since postwar Italian immigration introduced espresso to the nation in the 1950s.

Source : Reuters
[tags : recession bankrupt collapse retrenchment financial news collapse stagnation economic]