Workers At Spain’s Airports Plan Strikes Over Christmas Holidays
Spain News
Published: 14 December 2022 17:46 CET
Workers at Spanish airport operator Aena are planning to walk out over the festive season, the CCOO Union announced on Tuesday, December 13.
Aena operates 45 airports and two heliports in Spain and has more than 13,000 international workers according to their company website.
It is estimated that some 10,000 of those workers at airports and control centers will be taking part in the strike. News that will not be welcomed by many British nationals who are planning to travel to Spain over the Christmas and New Year period.
According to SchengenVisaInfo.com it isn’t only UK Nationals that will be affected by the strikes, but also other countries from the EU and Economic Area.
A spokesperson from Aena has said that the company, which is controlled by the Spanish government, is hoping to negotiate a deal by next week.
Francisco José Casado Moreno, CCOO general secretary for Aena said that “Despite promising words from the companies involved and the Ministry of Transport, the delay in reaching an agreement is causing a lot of uneasiness among the workers and the unions present at the negotiating table.”
According to Reuters, the CCOO-affiliated workers plan to strike on December 22, 23, 30, and 31 December as well as January 6 and 8.
“And we will continue (striking) if the conflict is not resolved, during the first quarter of 2023, including Easter,” Casado stressed.
The union has also explained that the reason for the length of the strikes is because workers want Aena to resume the bonus it suspended during the Covid pandemic.
“During the years of the pandemic, and in an important gesture of responsibility, we have not requested the payment of the bonus,” CCOO stated.
The union also added that the traffic numbers of Aena are once again back to pre-pandemic levels, suggesting that the policy should also change as things have returned to normality.
“Air traffic has recovered to 2019 levels (a record year for Spain) and some airports have exceeded them,” Francisco José Casado Moreno, CCOO general secretary for Aena, stated on Friday.
“The distribution of dividends to private shareholders is also authorised and the workers of the Aena group demand therefore what corresponds to us from the recovery.”
This is part of ongoing talks between Aena’s unionists and the Spanish government, with CCOO set to officially log the strike in the coming days if a deal is not reached.
According to Spanish law, strike action in Spain, such as that involving cabin crew for low-cost Spanish airline Vueling, has to assure minimum services if industrial action is considered to cause a major public disturbance.
Although it has not been fully determined how many Aena workers will take part in the strike, the minimum services obligation should ensure that Spanish airports don’t come to a standstill over the Christmas holidays. However, previous industrial action by airport staff in Spain has resulted in massive flight delays and cancellations.
Reuters has explained that although the entire Aena workforce may be walking out, other unions such as the UGT and USO have said that their members will not be taking strike action.
Sources
https://www.schengenvisainfo.com/news/britons-planning-to-reach-spain-around-christmas-to-face-chaos-due-to-airport-staff-strike/
https://www.thelocal.es/20221212/spains-airport-staff-set-to-strike-over-christmas-what-you-need-to-know/
