The CAEB, CCOO and UGT have asked Palma City Council to extend the moratorium on the new regulations for terraces, until issues of safety, health, the welfare of neighbours, employment and economic activity have been agreed.
They warned that the new measures have “a direct negative affect on health and safety, security, the well-being of Palma residents, employment and economic activity and pointed out that the terraces are attractive to both residents and tourists.”
The petition was delivered to Palma Mayor, José Hila on Wednesday by the President of CAEB, Carmen Planas; the General Secretary of CCOO in the Baleares, José Luís García; the UGT Secretary of Trade Union Action & Communication, Ana Landero, the President of CAEB Mallorca Restoration, Alfonso Robledo, and the CCOO Secretary of the Federation of Commerce, Hospitality & Tourism, Ángeles Sánchez.
Employers and unions have asked the Mayor to extend the March 5 deadline to adapt furniture to the new regulations and representatives of CCOO and UGT have emphasised "the negative repercussions that the application of the ordinance will have in the workplace and on workers and employment”.
The unions have warned that it will mean an "obvious loss of jobs" because the ordinance "implies in practice an unquestionable reduction in economic activity in the hospitality industry."
They also argued that the ordinance does not respect hospitality workers, forcing workers to move heavy furniture twice a day and "poses a risk to the health of workers.”
They pointed out that replacing the awnings with umbrellas is also dangerous because “umbrella feet can weigh more than 40 kilos, which is obviously a health and safety risk for workers who have to move them”.
Union representatives claim that "the terraces are generating employment" and that the introduction of new regulations "must be done in the best possible way, without harming employment, the workload of waiters, or the health and safety of workers.”
The CAEB believes the ordinance will result in a loss of jobs and reduced economic activity and says “it's impossible to comply with the new ordinance” because many establishments don’t have the space to store terrace items; it’s bad for workers' health and safety and that putting up and dismantling the terraces every morning and night will be noisy for neighbours. They also claim that replacing awnings with umbrellas "will generate a public safety problem if the wind blows them over.”
Representatives of CAEB and Restoration argue that the ordinance provokes legal uncertainty for those who have made important investments in terraces, which they believe make Palma “a dynamic, cheerful and attractive city.”