Ground staff at Iberia, a subsidiary of IAG, began a strike across Spain on Friday, but the airline itself has not yet been seriously affected.
advertisementGround staff from IAG’s Iberia Airlines have begun a four-day strike at Spanish airports.
The measures have forced the cancellation of hundreds of flights, but the airline has so far reported minimal impact on service.
Early Friday morning, Iberia announced that operations were continuing as usual.
Talks between the company and the union are ongoing, and the strike had been expected for several weeks, with “more than 90% of our customers already having obtained flight cancellation solutions.”
Ground staff, including baggage handlers, are on strike at a Spanish airport over a contract signed with a new provider.
Negotiations between the company and the labor union broke down at the last minute.
Spain’s two main trade unions, CCOO and UGT, have decided to go on strike from January 5th to January 8th. The dates will disrupt travel across Spain’s traditional Epiphany holiday.
It was unclear exactly how many people were on the picket line, but Iberia told reporters that Madrid’s airport would not be affected.
Key hubs such as Alicante, Barcelona, Bilbao, Gran Canaria, Ibiza, Malaga, Palma de Mallorca and Tenerife are most likely to face disruption.
Around 700 flights have been canceled by Air Nostrum, Iberia and Iberia Express, as well as other IAG partner airlines.
Iberia says only 3,800 of its 8,000 ground service staff are currently working at the airport, where the service is being operated by a new contractor.
Spain’s commercial airports are operated by the state-owned Aena.
In September, the airline hired a new contractor for the service previously provided by Iberia at many airports. This angered the union, even though the new supplier had promised to retain workers and maintain optimal working conditions.
Iberia is contesting the new contract in Spanish courts. They criticized the strike action as “irresponsible.”