The Spanish trade unions CCOO, UGT, CGT and SF have called on employees of the Spanish railway companies Renfe, Adif and Rodalies to go on strike this month. You should therefore, check the dates if you plan to travel by train.
With the strikes, the unions want to urge the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility to quickly reach an agreement. If so, the strikes can be prevented.
The blocking of the agreements affecting each of the public railway companies is at the root of this call by the majority Renfe trade union, the CCOO. However, if there is no last-minute agreement, the 23-hour strike will remain in force at Renfe and Adif on Friday 9 February. As a result, the timetable of the Cercanías in Madrid will be disrupted. But protests are also planned at Rodalies in Barcelona. First of all, on 16 and 19 February. In addition, on Mondays in February, the trains will not run for periods of two hours.
Strike call for trade unions
The CCOO union has called for a 23-hour train strike at Renfe and Adif for 9 February. At stake is the demand to unblock the collective agreements. These have been agreed between the unions and the company, but the government has blocked them in both cases.
In the case of Renfe, six months have already elapsed since the negotiating committee’s agreement to the collective agreement. But there is no permission yet to apply the agreement, according to the union.
The Ministry of Finance has not authorised the elimination of the entry categories in Renfe. In addition, the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility has cancelled the agreed 35-hour working-week, CCOO said.
The CCOO has also denounced “the vulnerable situation” faced by trade unions and therefore also by workers when it comes to negotiating and concluding agreements to improve their working conditions. The trade unions – CCOO, SCF and UGT – are demanding the introduction of the 35-hour working week. In addition, they want to make progress in unblocking the agreements on the abolition of the entry scales. According to the unions, previous agreements are not respected.
Adif Works Council
The works council of Adif, which also includes UGT, CGT, SCF and SF, has decided to send a letter to the Minister of Transport, Óscar Puente. In it, the board calls for “the immediate and forceful purge of responsibilities in the face of inaction and poor management.”
It will also suspend industrial relations with management. However, health and safety meetings will continue. The council recommends that the provincial committees stop all collective bargaining. This happened after she lost confidence in the management. On 6 February from 12.00 noon to 2.00 pm, a meeting will take place in front of the building of the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility.
Train strikes at Rodalies in Catalonia
Also, in Catalonia, CC OO and UGT have called on some 800 Rodalies employees to support the strike on Friday 16 and Monday 19 February, from 7.00 am to 9.00 am and from 3.00 pm to 5.00 pm, “due to the lack of staff in Rodalies” in Catalonia.
The unions have also proposed work stoppages in Renfe’s high-speed, long-distance and international train services. They have denounced the “lack of conductors on the trains, of the staff in the stations and especially in the management centre of Rodalies de Catalunya”. This has only led to poorer service to travellers,” they add.
The UGT has called for two-hour train strikes on Mondays in February. The union warns that the conflict measures could take on a “much more forceful” character if they do not deliver the expected results and objectives.
An overview of the train strikes
Madrid: Friday 9 February, Cercanías of Madrid, from midnight to 11.00 pm. In addition, UGT has called for partial work stoppages of 2 hours on Mondays 12, 19 and 26 February.
Barcelona: In Barcelona, work stoppages are scheduled for February 16 and 19. Interruptions will take place from 7.00 am to 9.00 am and from 3.00 pm to 5.00 pm.
