Iberia staff to strike over Christmas

Workers' unions have called an eight-day strike at Iberia over the Christmas holidays in response to the company's refusal to create set up their own baggage handling services at airports where it has lost its license to do this.

Trade unions CCOO and UGT have called the strike action for December 29, 30, 31, January 1, 4, 5, 6, and 7.

Spanish airport authority Aena put the services of aircraft ground assistance out to tender and Iberia opted against bidding to carry out these services at eight different airports, a decision Iberia does not rule out appealing in court.

In the meantime, and given the concerns that the situation has created, Iberia staff had asked company management to be able to carry out this service themselves for IAG planes, which include the airlines British Airways, Iberia, Aer Lingus, Vueling and LEVEL.

Iberia considers this option "unfeasible" and regrets the "irresponsible" call of strike action in the middle of negotiations for a "solution."

One of these solutions could be to subcontract the workers to the companies that won the tender to carry out the handling services. Iberia says this would be done "with the guarantee that all of them would fully retain all their rights, all their concepts of employment, salary and non-salary benefits, including the plane tickets they enjoy as Iberia employees."

Iberia believes that doing the handling services in-house would cause "serious damage" to the competitiveness of the company "and of all IAG airlines," with the "consequent economic impact and the inescapable condemnation of this business in the medium term."

The company has highlighted that the strike over the Christmas holidays "irreparably damages the right to holidays and the reunification of families and friends on such significant dates."

Iberia also believes that workers' rights , labor rights, economic rights, and trade union rights are "not threatened" in this situation.