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Airline pays staff bonus for spotting oversized bags

Luggage - Level 0

The budget airline Ryanair will pay staff more to spot bags that are too big. This is a "gate bag bonus". The company thinks a bigger bonus could lead to fewer large bags on its planes. Ryanair wants to lower the number of passengers with oversized baggage. Passengers must pay for oversized bags. The fee is $90.

Ryanair said strict rules were necessary. Most people follow the rules. Over 99.9 per cent of luggage is the correct size. Ryanair said it reminds customers about baggage size when they book an air ticket. The company hopes the problem of oversized luggage will disappear. This may happen after a few years.

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Luggage - Level 1

The budget airline Ryanair will increase the bonus it pays to staff for finding bags that are too big. Staff currently get a "gate bag bonus". This is capped at $95 a month. Ryanair wants to remove this cap. This could lead to fewer large suitcases. Ryanair's CEO said the company was "struggling" with baggage. He said he wants to lower the number of passengers with oversized baggage. Passengers must pay up to $88 for oversized bags.

Ryanair said stricter rules were necessary, even though most people follow the rules. Over 99.9 per cent of passengers' luggage is the correct size. Ryanair said people know about the baggage rules because they are on its website. The company said it reminds customers about baggage size when they book an air ticket. The company hopes the problem of oversized luggage will disappear after a few years.

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Luggage - Level 2

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The budget airline Ryanair has a plan for the problem of oversized luggage. The airline will increase the bonus it pays to staff for spotting bags that are too big. Staff currently get a "gate bag bonus" of $1.75 a passenger. This is capped at about $95 a month. Ryanair's CEO wants to remove this cap. He hopes removing it will lead to fewer large suitcases. The CEO said Ryanair was "struggling" with baggage. He said his airline needs to do more to cut the number of passengers with excess baggage. Passengers must pay a fee of up to $88 for oversized bags.

Ryanair's CEO said stricter rules were necessary, even though most people follow the rules. He said more than 99.9 per cent of passengers' luggage fits the size limits. Ryanair said people know about the baggage rules because they are on its website. The company said: "Our bag policies are well understood. We remind customers of this when booking, and on their boarding pass. The CEO said a small number of customers do not follow the rules. The company hopes the problem of oversized luggage will disappear after a few years.

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Luggage - Level 3

The Irish budget airline Ryanair has a plan to deal with oversized luggage. The airline could increase a bonus it pays to staff for spotting bags that are too big. Ryanair staff currently get a "gate bag bonus" of €1.50 ($1.75) a passenger. This bonus is capped at about €80 ($94) a month. Ryanair's chief executive officer (CEO) wants to remove the monthly cap. He hopes removing it will mean fewer large bags going on the aircraft. The CEO said: "We're already struggling with that amount of baggage. That's one of the reasons we are so aggressive about [cutting] the [number] of passengers with excess baggage." Passengers must pay a fee of up to €75 for oversized bags and suitcases.

Ryanair's CEO said being stricter with baggage was necessary, even though most people follow the rules. He said more than 99.9 per cent of passengers have luggage that fits within the size limits. Ryanair said most people knew about the company's baggage rules because they are clear to see on different websites. The company said: "Our bag policies and options are well understood, and we remind customers of this when booking, before they travel, and on their boarding pass. A very small proportion of customers who do not [follow our rules] will be charged at the airport." The company hopes the problem of oversized luggage will disappear within a few years.

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