Photo of Ryanair crew sleeping on airport floor was staged, airline says
A photograph of Ryanair crew sleeping on an airport floor was staged, footage from the airline showed today.
Staff at the low-cost carrier had released a photograph showing them lying on the floor of an airport staff lounge.
La imagen del aeropuerto de Málaga ha sido una escenificación y protesta del trato que Ryanair da a sus trabajadores https://t.co/rl5B0u7PLY vía @20m
— Confederación USO (@SindicatoUSO) October 18, 2018
The picture went viral, sparking criticism of the airline across social media.
However, Ryanair said the photograph was faked by staff members at Malaga Airport on Saturday night.
Ryanair exposes fake photo of cabin crew sleeping in crew room. Watch video here: pic.twitter.com/tzTn6EHsKH
— Ryanair (@Ryanair) October 17, 2018
CCTV footage released by the airline shows staff in a poorly lit room getting up from chairs and lying down on the hard floor to pose for a photograph.
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A representative for the crew told the Irish Times: “By posting the video, Ryanair demonstrated that the crews were stuck in a room with only a few chairs. This completely validates our original point.
“The crew did it as a protest to demonstrate what kind of conditions they had to endure.”