MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Playboy “rescue plan” for Varig staff

A group of stunning Brazilian stewardesses from the former airline Varig are negotiating a contract with Playboy magazine for the publication of nude photographs.

Sources in Rio do Janeiro from the magazine revealed the idea is a repeat of the Playboy 2002 experience in United States with former personnel from the scandalous bankruptcy of the Enron Group.

According to ER Communications, which manages Playboy's public relations in Brazil "a negotiation is on" with Varig staff, but no agreement has been reached yet, and if an agreement is reached, "there's no timetable for the publication of the pictures".

Varig which for decades was Latinamerica leading and most prestigious carrier is desperately trying to survive disappearance saddled with 3 billion US dollars in debts.

On Friday staff from Varig went on strike to press demands for arrears payments following the announcement it was leaving 5.500 employees redundant as part of a restructuring plan.

Some 400 Varig ground workers at Sao Paulo's Guarulhos International Airport launched the job action disrupting most of the airline's flights. Of these 400 workers, 300 were the first to receive layoff notices. The airline has promised to pay back wages to those that remain on staff but did not indicate what would happen with those who were losing their jobs.

"They didn't accept and are going on strike indefinitely until Varig deposits their back salaries. The flights are suspended" said Sao Paulo ground workers' union leader Uebio Jose da Silva, who expects more layoffs.

Varig which until three months ago ran 70% of all international flights originating in Brazil currently only operates with just 10 aircraft.

The new company said that "operational costs" must be restructured and promised to keep 3,985 employees out of a total 9.485 payroll in Brazil.

However, according to Da Silva, if the new company is going to operate with just 10 airplanes and the international average is 100 workers per plane, the airline will only need between 1,000 and 1,200 workers maximum.

For the union leader, waiting for jobs to be restored "is like believing in Santa Claus". "This Varig has been born only with the name and routes. For Varig employees it has already died and is just a corpse that has donated its organs".

Varig, which was once Latin America's largest and most prestigious airline said it will maintain its current domestic operations, which are limited to flights among the Brazilian cities of Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Porto Alegre, Fortaleza, Salvador, Recife and Manaus.

The company also runs daily flights to Frankfurt, Germany, and Buenos Aires and flights on alternate days to Miami and New York.