Guernsey airline Aurigny appeals to islanders to help house staff

The airline is appealing for people on the island to help house staff

Airline Aurigny has appealed for islanders to help house new recruits from the UK.

The States-owned airline is looking to Guernsey residents to provide short or long-term room rentals for staff.

A social media post said: "We can't find enough lovely locals to fill our vacancies, so we have recruited some in the UK".

Airline spokeswoman Kay Leslie said the "entirely positive overture" would help the economy and the airline.

Ms Leslie said Aurigny was looking for a "couple of spare rooms for a couple of our staff", likely to be cabin crew.

The Guernsey-based airline has about 320 staff

She added: "I don't know that we would see (that) as a long-term strategy because we are always mindful that there is an issue on-island with local families and local people trying to find rented accommodation.

"There's no way as the local airline that we want to impact that."

She said it had already received "four or five" responses from people interested in renting out their rooms.

She said the airline's 320-strong workforce meant it was "fully staffed" operationally but added there were currently around six vacancies.

Chris Gnapp, managing director of Leapfrog Recruitment in Guernsey, said those working on short-term permits had to live with a householder, either a qualified individual or somebody on either a medium or long-term permit.

"And that person can have their own unit of accommodation so the short-term permits can go and live with them, effectively on a lodging-type basis," he said.

He accepted it was a "step into the unknown" for workers to live with strangers, but added: "I think it could be a really good way to attract staff into the island and hopefully have these people here long-term."

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