Labour unrest continues to dog Spain’s two busiest airports at the height of the long ‘Puente del Pilar’ weekend. Strike-tracker data updated on 11 October confirms three concurrent actions affecting aviation operations: • Barcelona–El Prat: an indefinite strike by 1,700 Groundforce ground-handling workers, called by the CGT union, has been running since 4 August and is classified as “major” for public impact. • Madrid-Barajas: maintenance technicians for the SATE automated baggage-handling system, represented by Alternativa Sindical de Clase (ASC), are stopping work five days a week until 30 November. • Private-tower ATC staff employed by Saerco at Jerez and A Coruña remain on a nationwide indefinite walk-out begun on 17 April. Although no new strikes start this week, the overlap with the 27,000-plus flights scheduled by Aena between 9 and 12 October means delays and mis-sorted bags are likely as travellers return on Monday. Business travellers with tight onward connections should build extra dwell time and use cabin baggage where possible. Airlines operating at Barcelona (Vueling, Level, Ryanair) have warned that priority-tagged luggage is not exempt from disruption; Madrid-Barajas reports average waits of 55 minutes for checked bags during peak strike periods. Under Spanish minimum-service rules, 90 % of scheduled flights must still operate, but handling slow-downs can cascade into missed slots across the European network. Companies with employee mobility programmes should advise staff to monitor flight status via carrier apps and Aena’s portal, and to save boarding passes for potential EU261 compensation claims. Relocation managers moving pets or oversized equipment through El Prat should consider routing through Valencia or Málaga until labour talks resume. The Ministry of Transport has urged unions and employers to restart mediation this week; however, both CGT and ASC insist wage-indexation clauses must reflect September’s 6.1 % CPI spike before strikes are lifted. With collective agreements for airport services across Spain expiring in December, further action in the pre-Christmas period cannot be ruled out.
Source: Strike Tracker
