Concessions offered on Alitalia talks

Air France-KLM has promised a revised plan for cutting jobs at Alitalia as part of its takeover of the carrier, marking its first concession in talks with the labour unions.

Air France-KLM Chief Executive Officer Jean-Cyril Spinetta, meeting unions in Rome to win their blessing for the deal, also offered to extend talks beyond a March 31th deadline as demanded by the unions, a union official attending the meeting said.

But the Italian Treasury - which owns a 49.9 per cent stake in the carrier - is opposed to prolonging the deadline, the official quoted Alitalia's chairman as telling the unions, leaving the fate of any extension of talks unclear.

Three major unions sounded a positive note after the meeting. The Cgil union, which had earlier criticised the deal, said it was in favour of continuing talks with the Franco-Dutch carrier while the Fit-Cisl union called it a "useful meeting."

"The concessions will allow for the start of talks," said Giuseppe Caronia, national secretary of the Uil Trasporti union. Still, two pilot unions said they were unsatisfied by Air France-KLM's concessions.

More than a week after unveiling its deal to buy Alitalia, Air France-KLM is struggling to overcome resistance from unions, Milan's airport operator and politicians campaigning ahead of an April general election, where the deal has become a hot issue.

Air France-KLM had earlier said it wanted all obstacles to the deal resolved before March 31 or throw in the towel, but on Tuesday appeared to soften its stance with the offer to extend talks beyond that date.

Talks with the unions are expected to resume Friday, after Air France-KLM has sent its revised proposal on job cuts, the unions said. The carrier in a statement said that it would outline measures showing that "no worker will be abandoned."

Air France-KLM current plans are to cut 2,100 jobs and take on less than half of the workers at Alitalia's troubled ground services unit AZ Servizi. That had angered Alitalia's unions, who want the number of job losses to be reduced by 40 per cent.