Alitalia's main labor unions plan 72-hour strike

The main labor unions for Italian state airline Alitalia said Tuesday they planned a 72-hour strike at the end of the month to protest what they said was management's lack of an industrial strategy.

The unions said in a statement they felt forced to call the &to=http://english.pravda.ru/comp/2002/07/16/32572.html' target=_blank>strike, which begins Nov. 29 with a 24-hour walkout of pilots and flight attendants.

The state-controlled carrier this week started a capital increase that ends Dec. 2 in an attempt to raise about Ђ1 billion (US$1.2 billion) to stave off the company's bankruptcy.

"The recapitalization is necessary but not enough to offer a future to Alitalia's 20,000 workers," six of Alitalia's nine unions said.