BUDAPEST (Reuters) - Staff at Budapest airport began an indefinite strike on Wednesday over demands for improved working conditions, causing serious flight delays and cancellations at Hungary's biggest international terminal.
Passengers were unable to board most flights as passenger security control was not operating, said a spokesman for Budapest Airport, owned by Germany's Hochtief AG.
He said Hungarian airline Malev cancelled all of its flights which were scheduled to depart before 12:00 a.m. British time, British Airways cancelled its London flight and Air France its flight to Paris.
Lufthansa is transporting its passengers to Vienna by bus.
"What affects us very badly is the strike by passenger security control staff, this is the bottleneck," Szollar told Reuters. "I cannot say when the strike could end. We would like the unions to rethink their proposals," he added.
Local internet portal Index.hu said Budapest Airport had officially informed airlines that it was not able to guarantee the departure of flights.
Incoming flights are not affected by the strike.
The two unions involved in the action are demanding a halt to cuts in the workforce, fewer overtime hours and a new collective agreement.
Budapest Airport said halting structural changes at the firm, which began in 2006, was not acceptable. It said it was ready to continue talks about a new collective agreement.
"They (the unions) say that the restructuring of Budapest Airport should stop. This is nonsense," Szollar said.
He said the company has laid off 100 people out of its 1,600 strong workforce since 2005, and 800 of its staff now work at firms which Budapest Airport has outsourced or divested, but the company also took on new staff this year.
Trade union officials were not available for comment.
Budapest Airport handled 8.6 million passengers last year.
(Reporting by Krisztina Than; Editing by Mark Trevelyan)
