After announcing 2900 job cuts, Air France bosses fled a violent crowd

That led to a demonstration outside a meeting at Charles de Gaulle airport that turned into a physical attack on Air France executives.

Alexandre de Juniac, the CEO of Air France-KLM, had reported Friday the organization would need to slice employments subsequent to neglecting to achieve a concurrence with pilots.

Gagey also signaled willingness to negotiate with staff over the planned cutbacks and said the company’s operating margin would be positive in 2015.

Under Air France’s initial restructuring plan, created to make the airline more competitive in the face of increasing worldwide competition, pilots would have been required to spend between 15 and 20 percent more time in the sky but for the same salary.

A few Air France executives were able to escape unscathed, but at least two had to wade through the crowd of angry protesters. A number of the protesters then stormed the meeting and havoc erupted.

Air France’s director of long-haul flights, Pierre Plissonnier, almost shirtless, tries to cross a fence, helped by security and police officers, after several hundred of employees invaded the offices of Air France, interrupting the meeting of the Central Committee (CCE) in Roissy-en-France, on October 5, 2015.

Unsurprisingly, he casts French pilots as guardians of the future of all Air France-KLM workers, whilst also highlighting their willingness to compromise with flinty-hearted management. The majority of job losses – 1,700 – are set to be among ground staff, as well as 300 pilots and 900 cabin crew.

Air France hasn’t recently fired workers outright, relying on attrition and early retirement packages to reduce the payroll by 9,000 over three years.

During the meeting, managers with the company announced a plan to cut up to 2,900 jobs in the coming months.

The Associated Press reports that activists protesting the layoffs broke a fence to get inside Air France headquarters, and tore the shirts off of two executives who were forced to flee. “It’s impossible, we are not on a level playing field”, he said.

“We are fighting every day for an Air France that will have lasting growth”, he said later, after donning a new jacket and tie.

The assistant HR director, Xavier Broseta, later said that he was “shocked and disappointed”, but added that this is not typical of company staff. French Prime Minister Manuel Valls has condemned the act.