Hundreds of thousands of British holidaymakers may face travel chaos as staff at Spanish airports plan to strike later this month.
More than 60,000 ground staff at Spanish airports have proposed a 24-hour walk out on two separate dates, 18 August and 26 August.
The nation’s favourite holiday destination could become a nightmare for travellers as areas set to be affected include Malaga, Alicante, the Canary Islands and the Balearic Islands (Majorca, Menorca and Ibiza).
Spanish workers’ unions CCOO, UGT and USO fully support the action, which was triggered by a private company’s decision at Barcelona’s El Prat airport to fire four workers.
A CCOO union spokesman said, “The strike will affect every single Spanish airport, and will involve around 60,000 workers.”
“The strikes have been called because handling companies are repeatedly ignoring agreements they made with unions, and in particular because of the laying off of four workers by WFS at Barcelona airport.”
The timing of the strikes could hardly be worse as the holiday season gets into full swing.
The first day of the strike coincides with the arrival of Pope Benedict in Madrid, who will participate in World Youth Day celebrations.
In a separate industrial dispute, workers on the capital’s underground have also called a strike on the same day.
(Image: plutor)
