Latest news with #CCOO
Scottish Sun
2 days ago
- Scottish Sun
Exact July date not to fly to or from Majorca as striking hotel workers unveil plans for devastating airport blockade
Chaos may be in store for thousands of holidaymakers flying in and out of the Balearics HOLIDAY NIGHTMARE Exact July date not to fly to or from Majorca as striking hotel workers unveil plans for devastating airport blockade Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) HOTEL workers are planning to blockade Majorca's airport in a major protest over pay and conditions that could throw holidays into chaos. It comes as over 180,000 workers in the Balearic Islands announced plans to strike on multiple dates throughout July. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 6 Hotel workers are planning a blockade on Majorca's airport on the first day of strikes Credit: Alamy 6 People march during a protest against overtourism in the Balearic Island of Majorca Credit: AP 6 Hotel workers in the Balearics earn less than the average hospitality worker in Spain Credit: Rex Unions say the goal of the airport blockade is to prevent entry and access points to the Balearics, which include Majorca, Ibiza and Menorca. The blockade is scheduled for July 10 - the first day of the Balearics' anti-tourism strikes. Walkouts will be repeated on July 18, 19, 25 and 31, with each one lasting the full 24 hours. A general strike in the hospitality sector, along with demonstrations across the Balearics' three main islands, was officially announced by the UGT union on Monday. The measure - carried out jointly with the CCOO union (Workers' Commissions) - will affect hotels, tourist accommodation, bars, restaurants, catering services, nightclubs and nightclubs. Both the Government Delegation and tourism bosses are reportedly aware of the looming strikes and protests. On July 10, marches in Majorca will begin at the Paseo Marítimo de Palma (at the height of Titos) and the Son Sant Joan Airport. Access points for arrivals and departures at Playa de Palma (Las Maravillas), Alcudia, Magaluf and Cala Millor will be blocked. The UGT is calling on nearly 180,000 workers to join these strikes. The goal is to put pressure on the hospitality sector to improve pay and working conditions. 6 Anti-tourist protesters blast holidaymakers with water guns & block hotels Workers in the Balearics are paid less than the average hospitality worker in Spain, according to the CCOO. The strike alert was triggered on June 26 after unions walked out of talks over disagreements on pay raises and better working conditions. The UGT rejected an offer for an 11 percent salary increase, saying the gap between their demands and the employers' proposal was still "too great". José García Relucio, General Secretary of the Federation of Services, Mobility and Consumption of UGT, said the talks "could not have gone worse" and condemned employers' inflexibility around pay. Meanwhile, Javier Vich, President of the Hotel Business Federation of Majorca, blamed unions for failing to meet a compromise. But he added that employers were making "all the necessary efforts" to reach a "fair" agreement with workers. The union CCOO says that it will not sign below a 15 percent wage increase. Employers also rejected the UGT's proposal to reduce workers' hours to 35 per week. The UGT representatives left the meeting without signing the minutes of the session, while those from the CCOO signed the document. It comes as the streets of Majorca have seen a number of protests against overtourism since the start of the year. In June, anti-tourist protestors swarmed a table of dining Brits and chanted "go home" and "go to hell". Officers were called to the scene in central Palma. Meanwhile, one Majorcan resident revealed a new, more insidious tactic deployed by locals to keep tourists out of popular beaches. Explaining the trick in a video online, she said locals are making up names for "secret" coves that are actually "dangerous" parts of the city located miles away from the coast. 6 Protests against overtourism have erupted across Spain since April 2024 Credit: Reuters 6 Demonstrators gather during an anti-tourist protest in Barcelona Credit: Reuters
The Irish Sun
2 days ago
- The Irish Sun
Exact July date not to fly to or from Majorca as striking hotel workers unveil plans for devastating airport blockade
HOTEL workers are planning to blockade Majorca's airport in a major protest over pay and conditions that could throw holidays into chaos. It comes as over 180,000 workers in the Advertisement 6 Hotel workers are planning a blockade on Majorca's airport on the first day of strikes Credit: Alamy 6 People march during a protest against overtourism in the Balearic Island of Majorca Credit: AP 6 Hotel workers in the Balearics earn less than the average hospitality worker in Spain Credit: Rex Unions say the goal of the airport blockade is to prevent entry and access points to the Balearics, which include The blockade is scheduled for July 10 - the first day of the Balearics' anti-tourism strikes. Walkouts will be repeated on July 18, 19, 25 and 31, with each one lasting the full 24 hours. A general strike in the hospitality sector, along with demonstrations across the Balearics' three main islands, was officially announced by the UGT union on Monday. Advertisement Read more world news The measure - carried out jointly with the CCOO union (Workers' Commissions) - will affect hotels, tourist accommodation, bars, restaurants, catering services, nightclubs and nightclubs. Both the Government Delegation and tourism bosses are reportedly aware of the looming strikes and protests. On July 10, marches in Majorca will begin at the Paseo Marítimo de Palma (at the height of Titos) and the Son Sant Joan Airport. Access points for arrivals and departures at Playa de Palma (Las Maravillas), Alcudia, Magaluf and Cala Millor will be blocked. Advertisement Most read in The Sun The UGT is calling on nearly 180,000 workers to join these strikes. The goal is to put pressure on the hospitality sector to improve pay and working conditions. 6 Anti-tourist protesters blast holidaymakers with water guns & block hotels Workers in the Balearics are paid less than the average hospitality worker in Spain, according to the CCOO. Advertisement The strike alert was triggered on June 26 after unions walked out of talks over disagreements on pay raises and better working conditions. The UGT rejected an offer for an 11 percent salary increase, saying the gap between their demands and the employers' proposal was still "too great". José García Relucio, General Secretary of the Federation of Services, Mobility and Consumption of UGT, said the talks "could not have gone worse" and condemned employers' inflexibility around pay. Meanwhile, Javier Vich, President of the Hotel Business Federation of Majorca, blamed unions for failing to meet a compromise. Advertisement But he added that employers were making "all the necessary efforts" to reach a "fair" agreement with workers. The union CCOO says that it will not sign below a 15 percent wage increase. Employers also rejected the UGT's proposal to reduce workers' hours to 35 per week. The UGT representatives left the meeting without signing the minutes of the session, while those from the CCOO signed the document. Advertisement It comes as the streets of Majorca have seen a number of In June, anti-tourist Officers were called to the scene in central Palma. Meanwhile, one Majorcan resident Advertisement Explaining the trick in a video online, she said locals are making up names for "secret" coves that are actually "dangerous" parts of the city located miles away from the coast. 6 Protests against overtourism have erupted across Spain since April 2024 Credit: Reuters 6 Demonstrators gather during an anti-tourist protest in Barcelona Credit: Reuters What is overtourism? Overtourism refers to the phenomenon where a destination experiences a volume of tourists that exceeds its manageable capacity The term is often used to describe the negative consequences of mass tourism, which includes overcrowding and environmental issues As a result, popular destinations have become less enjoyable for both visitors and locals Local communities, in particular, bear the brunt, facing rising costs and a depletion of resources In response, national and local governments have started to implement measures to reduce overtourism Some solutions include: Safeguarding historical and heritage sites Promoting off-peak travel Tourism caps and regulations Promoting lesser-known destinations
The Sun
2 days ago
- Business
- The Sun
Exact July date not to fly to or from Majorca as striking hotel workers unveil plans for devastating airport blockade
HOTEL workers are planning to blockade Majorca's airport in a major protest over pay and conditions that could throw holidays into chaos. It comes as over 180,000 workers in the Balearic Islands announced plans to strike on multiple dates throughout July. 6 6 6 Unions say the goal of the airport blockade is to prevent entry and access points to the Balearics, which include Majorca, Ibiza and Menorca. The blockade is scheduled for July 10 - the first day of the Balearics' anti-tourism strikes. Walkouts will be repeated on July 18, 19, 25 and 31, with each one lasting the full 24 hours. A general strike in the hospitality sector, along with demonstrations across the Balearics' three main islands, was officially announced by the UGT union on Monday. The measure - carried out jointly with the CCOO union (Workers' Commissions) - will affect hotels, tourist accommodation, bars, restaurants, catering services, nightclubs and nightclubs. Both the Government Delegation and tourism bosses are reportedly aware of the looming strikes and protests. On July 10, marches in Majorca will begin at the Paseo Marítimo de Palma (at the height of Titos) and the Son Sant Joan Airport. Access points for arrivals and departures at Playa de Palma (Las Maravillas), Alcudia, Magaluf and Cala Millor will be blocked. The UGT is calling on nearly 180,000 workers to join these strikes. The goal is to put pressure on the hospitality sector to improve pay and working conditions. 6 Workers in the Balearics are paid less than the average hospitality worker in Spain, according to the CCOO. The strike alert was triggered on June 26 after unions walked out of talks over disagreements on pay raises and better working conditions. The UGT rejected an offer for an 11 percent salary increase, saying the gap between their demands and the employers' proposal was still "too great". José García Relucio, General Secretary of the Federation of Services, Mobility and Consumption of UGT, said the talks "could not have gone worse" and condemned employers' inflexibility around pay. Meanwhile, Javier Vich, President of the Hotel Business Federation of Majorca, blamed unions for failing to meet a compromise. But he added that employers were making "all the necessary efforts" to reach a "fair" agreement with workers. The union CCOO says that it will not sign below a 15 percent wage increase. Employers also rejected the UGT's proposal to reduce workers' hours to 35 per week. The UGT representatives left the meeting without signing the minutes of the session, while those from the CCOO signed the document. It comes as the streets of Majorca have seen a number of protests against overtourism since the start of the year. In June, anti-tourist protestors swarmed a table of dining Brits and chanted "go home" and "go to hell". Officers were called to the scene in central Palma. Meanwhile, one Majorcan resident revealed a new, more insidious tactic deployed by locals to keep tourists out of popular beaches. Explaining the trick in a video online, she said locals are making up names for "secret" coves that are actually "dangerous" parts of the city located miles away from the coast. 6 6 What is overtourism? Overtourism refers to the phenomenon where a destination experiences a volume of tourists that exceeds its manageable capacity The term is often used to describe the negative consequences of mass tourism, which includes overcrowding and environmental issues As a result, popular destinations have become less enjoyable for both visitors and locals Local communities, in particular, bear the brunt, facing rising costs and a depletion of resources In response, national and local governments have started to implement measures to reduce overtourism Some solutions include: Safeguarding historical and heritage sites Promoting off-peak travel Tourism caps and regulations Promoting lesser-known destinations
Local Spain
17-06-2025
- Politics
- Local Spain
'The system will collapse': Spain's immigration staff go on strike
It's less than a month since Spain's new Immigration Law came into force, multi-faceted legislation which among other points will regularise the residency documents for potentially hundreds of thousands more foreigners. This has understandably increased the workload of civil servants at Spain's extranjería (immigration) offices, who warned before the law came into force that they were already overstretched, staging a strike to raise awareness for their situation. On Monday June 16th, hundreds of immigration staff stopped working for two hours in Murcia, Barcelona, Toledo, Valencia, Almería Málaga, Madrid, Tenerife and extranjería offices across Spain's 50 provinces. "We're not against the immigration reform," Joaquín García Poblete, head of Spanish trade union CCOO's Ciudad Real branch, told Spanish daily ABC. "But the officials who are supposed to process the cases haven't been included. If staff numbers aren't bolstered, the system will collapse." The situation, according to the union, affects not only public employees, but also thousands of migrants in Spain seeking to regularise their status, as well as employers in strategic sectors such as agriculture and construction, who depend on this workforce. 'In Madrid, there are 28,000 people who have submitted their documents and are waiting to hear back; that's a lot of lives,' César Pérez, head of immigration at the Ministry of Territorial Policy, told El Periódico de España. Extranjería offices across Spain are dealing with a workload that's 'between 50 and 400 percent higher' than it was before the immigration reform began on May 20th. Staff are also acutely aware that their work can have a huge impact on people's lives, adding extra pressure to their daily routines. 'It's unmanageable because there's no staff, training is delayed, and instructions on how to apply the new regulations are unclear,' Pérez explained. This is resulting in waiting times for residency documents continuously increasing. In Madrid, the time for a foreigner to get a reply to their application has reportedly gone from 76 to 90 working days (around four months) in a matter of a week. In Málaga, where 100 percent of extranjería staff took part in Monday's stoppage, they protested that immigration workers have "lowest salary conditions in the entire State Administration, without a productivity bonus, without access to a remote work model, and with an outdated job structure that hasn't been reviewed for more than two decades." The fear now is that as the summer approaches and many of these overworked employees take their holidays, the backlog will become "catastrophic" due to the lack of new staff members to help with the extra workload.
Morocco World
09-06-2025
- Business
- Morocco World
Vulnerable Moroccan Women Exploited in Spain, Then Expelled
Rabat — Two Moroccan women employed in Spain's lucrative strawberry harvest were reportedly recently sent back to Morocco under troubling circumstances—one while five months pregnant, and another after being diagnosed with cervical cancer. Unions and migrant rights organizations, cited in Spanish media reports, have condemned both incidents as blatant violations of labor laws and basic human dignity, accusing employers of exploitation and neglect. In contrast, the companies involved have downplayed the allegations and offered conflicting accounts in an apparent attempt to deflect responsibility. Unprotected pregnant worker The cases were extensively reported by the Spanish newspaper Publico in an article titled 'A pregnant woman and another with cancer sent back to Morocco: labor rights don't grow in strawberry fields'. In the first case, a group of Moroccan women were hired through Spain's Collective Management of Hiring in the Country of Origin (GECCO) program, which facilitates seasonal labor contracts for agricultural work. They arrived in Huelva in April to work for Berrys la Dehesa, a farm in the town of Cartaya. According to the Workers' Commissions union (CCOO), the women were left without formal contracts, pay slips, or social security registration. Believing their employment would continue, they had already sent their April wages home, leaving them stranded and without resources. CCOO states that the company stopped giving them work after May 9 and failed to provide the required documentation. 'They were left in a situation of extreme economic vulnerability,' said Teresa Pulido, provincial secretary of CCOO's Industry branch. 'They had no money, no legal protection, and were pressured to leave the country 'by their own means'—a clear violation of GECCO's commitments.' Among the group was a woman five months pregnant, whose case drew particular concern. The union filed formal complaints with Spain's Labor Inspectorate and the Government Subdelegation in Huelva. After the intervention, the company was eventually forced to sign contracts and process their Foreign Identity Cards (TIE), which are essential for eligibility in future work seasons. The women have since returned to Morocco, but CCOO has requested that they not be assigned to the same company in future campaigns, to prevent possible retaliation. When approached by journalists, the employer reportedly refused to answer questions. 'I have nothing to say,' he told Publico. According to CCOO, the employer also reacted aggressively during negotiations, allegedly telling a union representative: 'You're not going to mess with me, kid.' Discarded cancer patient In a second, even more alarming case, Zahra, a 47-year-old Moroccan woman who has worked in Huelva's berry fields for seven years, was sent back to Morocco after being diagnosed with cervical cancer. She had been receiving treatment at the Juan Ramón Jiménez Hospital in Huelva, with medication prescribed through September. The Association of Immigrant Women in Action (AMIA), which remains in contact with Zahra, says the decision to send her home has put her life at risk. 'She can't stop crying,' said Fátima Ezzohayry, AMIA's president. 'She has no money to continue treatment in Morocco, where everything costs money, and public healthcare is limited. If you can't afford it, you die faster.' Zahra is a single mother of six, with three children still in her care. She had stopped working on May 12 due to her illness and was depending on Spain's social security system, which she had contributed to for years as a seasonal worker. AMIA argues that she should have been granted medical leave, not deported. AMIA is now demanding her return to Spain to continue cancer treatment. 'After seven years of legal work under GECCO, she has rights—to sick leave, to care, to dignity,' said Ezzohayry. 'You can't just discard her like this.' The strawberry industry's main association, Interfresa, disputes AMIA's account. Through its Prelsi program—a corporate social responsibility initiative—Interfresa claims Zahra chose to return home. 'She requested to go back to Morocco after being diagnosed with terminal cancer, to be with her family,' said a Prelsi coordinator, who added that Zahra later phoned to thank them for the support in arranging her return. AMIA strongly refutes this version. 'That call was not to thank them,' said Ezzohayry. 'It was to ask for the hospital reports and lab tests she needs for her treatment in Morocco. Without them, doctors there would have to start all over again.' Zahra's former employer, Berrys La Fontanilla, and the cooperative Fresón de Palos, have reportedly declined to comment publicly. Fresón de Palos only told Publico that Zahra was 'supported in everything she needed.' As far as a death sentence The report states that this isn't the first time such a case has surfaced. In 2022, another Moroccan woman named Smahia, also working in Huelva under GECCO, was sent home after being diagnosed with terminal cervical cancer. She had been coming to Spain for 14 years and was supporting four children. According to the group Jornaleras en Lucha, Smahia's employer in Almonte dismissed her condition, suggesting she was 'faking it' to stay in Spain. She died shortly after returning to Morocco. The strawberry industry in Huelva, which spans 11,700 hectares, produces over 350,000 tons of fruit annually and contributes roughly 8% of Andalusia's GDP. Huelva accounts for 97% of Spain's red fruit production, making it a major exporter to countries like the UK, Germany, France, and the Netherlands. The sector depends heavily on migrant labor, particularly through the GECCO program, which brought 17,000 Moroccan women to Spain this year alone—4,000 for the first time. While GECCO is presented as a model of circular migration, these recent cases have sparked renewed scrutiny. 'Most employers do things right,' said CCOO's Pulido, 'but when cases like this come to light, it damages the reputation of the entire sector. We must ensure that those who violate the rules face consequences.' 'I wish I had drowned in the sea' The abuse of Moroccan seasonal laborers in Huelva is a long-standing issue, far from being limited to isolated incidents. In 2021, Morocco coordinated the repatriation of 170 women who had been stranded in Spain after facing urgent personal and health-related crises, including illness, the death of relatives, advanced pregnancies, or even childbirth. The repatriation followed negotiations between Spanish and Moroccan consulates and included COVID-19 precautions such as testing and hotel quarantine. That situation echoed the year before, when over 7,000 Moroccan women were trapped in Spain due to pandemic border closures, pleading for return while enduring economic and emotional hardship. These incidents are part of a longer pattern of abuse in Spain's berry industry. Moroccan seasonal workers have repeatedly raised alarm over exploitative labor practices in Huelva's farms — from unpaid wages and excessive hours to degrading treatment and, in some cases, sexual violence. A 2019 New York Times investigation quoted a worker who described the experience as being 'brought to be exploited and sent back,' adding: 'I wish I had drowned in the sea before coming here.' The persistence of such testimonies underscores the systemic nature of the abuses faced by migrant women working in Spain's lucrative red fruit sector.
