Air traffic at Geneva Airport was at a standstill early on Friday, with dozens of flight arrivals and departures cancelled due to a strike over pay by public service staff who plan to continue striking into Saturday.

About a hundred employees stood outside the airport's departure area to protest against a salary policy approved by the airport's board of directors that imposes a freeze on pay increases.

The strike caused air traffic at the airport, a hub for diplomats and officials travelling to the United Nations, to be halted between 6 a.m. and 10 a.m. local time on Friday.

The Public Services Union, which rejected a proposal by the airport management that could have ended the strike, voted to continue striking for the remainder of Friday and to return to the picket line on Saturday.

"Of course it's unfortunate but we ask passengers to direct their anger towards the airport management that is responsible for this mess," said Jamshid Pouranpir, union secretary of the Public Services Union.

Pierre Bernheim, president of Geneva Airport, said the strike was unjustified.

"I'm sad because they are taking passengers, who may have saved money for a long time, hostage," he said, describing the pay and work conditions at the airport as excellent.

The delays became noticeable at around 9:30 a.m., when passengers formed large lines to check in and go through security checks. The striking workers include security and emergency staff.

"I understand they are defending their purchasing power, but they could have chosen another day," said Gilles Segret, a resident of the French city of Annecy, who was scheduled to fly to Amsterdam.

Kent Normark, a Danish runner, was due to fly to Denmark for a 1,500-meter race on Saturday.

"I really hope to go back to Copenhagen," he said. (Reporting by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber and Cécile Mantovani; Editing by Jane Merriman)