- Representatives from Iberia, easyJet, DHL and Ryanair, among other airlines, participated in the event.
Madrid | March 24, 2025
On March 20, the Airline Association - ALA held its Board of Directors meeting at the Envera Integral Disability Center, a non-profit organization that accompanies people with disabilities in the journey of their lives and has an important relationship with the aeronautical world since its founding by employees of the Iberia company in 1977.
The Board of Directors was chaired by the President of ALA, Javier Gándara (easyJet); together with the Vice President, Víctor Moneo (Iberia); its administrator, Óscar Fraile (DHL); one of the members, David Simón (Ryanair); and the manager of the Association, Agapito Maricalva (OCA). Other members of the Board also participated on-line.
In addition to holding their internal meeting, the representatives of the reference association of the aviation sector in Spain have participated in a day of immersion in disability in which they have known in depth the employment and support services that Envera provides to people with disabilities.
Among the work carried out by Envera's professionals with disabilities, those related to their direct impact on the airline industry stand out, such as the preparation of in-flight toiletries and the laundry of aircraft linen for Iberia, the annual management of 2 million tickets rejected by the Amadeus system, the waste management of Malaga-Costa del Sol Airport (won by public tender from AENA) or the recycling of objects and suitcases lost in airplanes and airports to give them a second life in the airline industry. Envera Inclusion Point and help, through donations, 25 other NGOs in Spain and abroad.
Gándara also participated in a Radio Terrícola program, conducted by reporters with intellectual disabilities from the Envera Occupational Center, where he admitted that "we are all impressed by the things you do here. It is impressive everything you do and how well you do it".
I think many of the airlines that are here today that are not yet working for Envera are already coming up with a lot of ideas that we will share with you to see how you can help us do things better.
At a time when sustainability and social responsibility are key strategic elements of competitiveness for companies, the president of ALA assured "that many of the airlines that are here today and that are not yet working for Envera, are already having many ideas that we will share with you to see how you can help us to do things better" and added that "other companies, not only aviation companies, should come here, spend a day with you and jointly identify things that you could help us with".
As Envera points out, people with disabilities bring "a lot of value to companies", from "talent without labels that provides other points of view, diversity as a fundamental part of 21st century organizations, to compliance with the General Law on Disability and ESG criteria that today are essential for customers, employees, investors and funders".
Enrique Grande, general director of the NGO, expressed his gratitude to ALA for "the visit and for celebrating together today the triumph of inclusion in the house of Envera - Iberia's social work, demonstrating that the aeronautical sector is an exemplary sector for many others, a committed sector that, for almost half a century, has been committed to equal opportunities".
