Fresh wave of baggage handler strikes at Spanish airports
Dates have yet to be announced for the work stoppages that would impact airports across Spain
Between pilots, flight attendants and ground crew, it seems hardly a week goes by when there isn’t some sort of industrial action at Spanish airports. But a new wave of strikes on behalf of baggage handlers threatens to cause chaos for passengers throughout the country.
Just before the weekend, three of the biggest unions – UGT, CCOO and USO – announced their plans to call a strike for all workers belonging to the Association of Auxiliary Services Companies for Air Transport (ASEATA). This association represents several different companies which provide baggage handling services at airports all over Spain.
The unions are complaining that a few of the companies still haven’t complied with the new collective agreement designed to provide staff with better pay and working conditions and they claim that the industrial action is a “last resort”.
However, the dates and duration of the strike haven’t been finalised, indicating that there might still be an opportunity to avoid the widespread disruption.
According to the unions, the baggage handling companies South, Aviapartner, Menzies, Azul Handling, Swissport and Groundforce are guilty of “repeated and systematic breaches of both the agreement and the rulings of the joint committee.”
Among their criticisms, they point out that these employers are not complying with the salary adjustments of the workers, that they do not recognise the remuneration levels of the collective agreement and that they do not apply the work shifts according to the agreements, which is why there is “abuse of the working day” by changing rosters without proper notice.
For all these reasons, they consider that the failure of these companies to comply with the agreements leaves “no other option than conflict as a tool” to defend workers.
To avoid the strike action, the unions have demanded that ASEATA and the offending member companies reconsider their position urgently and commit to an “effective and decisive” dialogue about staff working conditions.
Image: Archive
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