Palma airport has just recovered from two-days of delays and flight cancellations due to strike action by French air traffic controllers, much to the fury of Ryanair which was hardest hit, not to mention easyJet cabin crew having gone on strike and parts of Palma airport falling to pieces as a result of freak storms and building work being carried out - now it is facing more industrial action.
Today, Thursday, the CCOO, UGT and USO trade unions’ members of the Groundforce works committee, have denounced the ‘serious situation’ facing the staff of the handling company at Palma airport and have threatened industrial action. The CCOO union has issued a statement condemning the job insecurity and excessive workload as well as the ‘alarming’ health and safety conditions.
The union has slammed a ‘high level of bias’, excessive overtime, a shortage of human and material resources, and a ‘clear’ imbalance between wages and the cost of living in the Balearics. Many employees are poor workers, despite operating in a sector that should offer stability in high season,’ said the CCOO, which also criticised the company’s ‘zero’ involvement in complying with safety protocols during the extreme heat.
For this reason, the works committee has announced plans to take industrial action to demand urgent improvements in working conditions and has called for the immediate opening of negotiations with the company and the competent authorities to find solutions to an ‘unsustainable’ situation.