Alitalia unions attack Air France-KLM

Air France-KLM on Friday agreed to take on an extra 12 percent of Alitalia's ground service workers, but unions fighting its bid for the ailing Italian carrier rejected the concession as inadequate.

Air France-KLM, also battling resistance from Italian politicians and Milan's airport operator, has said it will scrap the deal without union support. The takeover is considered one of Alitalia's last hopes of averting bankruptcy.

After an initial stalemate in negotiations with the unions, Air France-KLM on Friday unveiled plans to hire about 900 more employees of Alitalia's troubled ground services unit, according to a document seen by Reuters.

Air France-KLM would now retain 4,191 out of about 7,400 employees at Alitalia's AZ Servizi ground services unit, compared with 3,300 in an earlier draft. (Reuters)