Former Flybondi workers protest unpaid wages and severance in Buenos Aires

Former employees of the Argentine low-cost airline Flybondi staged a protest at Buenos Aires' Aeroparque airport on Friday, demanding unpaid wages and severance packages. The company is facing an operational crisis, having suspended flights and dismissed over 700 workers.

Demonstrators carried banners and chanted slogans against the company and the government. Franco Vázquez, a cabin crew member dismissed on July 31 after years with the company, told EFE that most employees were laid off between March and April. He added that some still employed have not received salaries since June and lack medical coverage.

According to Vázquez, employees were forced to report to work under threat of being held responsible for flight cancellations until the airline suspended all scheduled flights. The protest organizers are not affiliated with the "Asociación de Trabajadores Aeronáuticos de Flybondi," a union they claim the company established and which has not addressed employee grievances.

Flybondi canceled 66 flights between August 6 and 10, leaving hundreds of passengers without refunds. The company's bank accounts were also frozen by Argentine justice due to tax debt. Despite these issues, Flybondi continues to sell tickets for domestic and international routes, and aviation authorities approved a regularization plan on August 5, theoretically allowing operations to continue.

Former employees reported that Flybondi owes payments for voluntary retirements and approved separation agreements. They urged President Javier Milei's government to intervene and compel the company to meet its obligations. Julieta Vázquez, another dismissed cabin crew member, described the situation as desperate, noting that colleagues about to give birth lack medical services and others cannot pay rent.