Trade unions of Bahrain’s national airline Gulf Air have launched a petition calling for additional benefits for Bahrainis made redundant as part of a restructuring plan, a report said.

The airline has already launched a voluntary redundancy scheme, but the Gulf Air Trade Union (GATU) and the National Trade Union of Gulf Air (NATUGA) are seeking higher payoffs, according to the report published in our sister newspaper the Gulf Daily News.

Around 1,200 staff are expected to lose their jobs at the national carrier and unionists say around 900 of those are Bahrainis.

The airline is being downsized as part of a strategy to reduce its losses, which reached BD95 million ($248 million) a year.

"We have sent a message to all GATU (members) and other staff for a petition," said GATU president Habib Al Nabbool.

"We are collecting signatures to give to His Majesty King Hamad. We are asking him to enter the negotiations as the jobs of these 900 Bahrainis will affect not only them, but their families as well."

However, he acknowledged that some staff had already accepted the voluntary redundancy packages - which he admitted were better than those guaranteed by the Labour Law. – TradeArabia News Service