Thousands of flights to Spain are set to be cancelled due to strikes

Spanish air traffic controllers have reiterated their desire to strike unless their demands are met.

The workers planning to strike are those at airports on the east coast of Spain and the Balearics, including those that service popular tourist destinations such as El Prat Airport in Barcelona, Palma de Mallorca Airport, Ibiza Airport and Menorca Airport. It is irregular working patterns and a system of one day off for everyeight worked that are causing the strikes, with some workers even planning to leave their posts by the end of the week. According to The Sun, representive Raul Tobaruela of the assembly of workers has stated that the group are currently being ignored by the Spanish government and ENAIRE, the air traffic service provider. For this reason he is not optimistic of a deal being reached anytime soon. “Our conditions are far from being normal,” he said. “I can assure you that our working situation is the worst in the entire of Europe.” Staff are often asked to work exhausting combinations of nights and mornings along for a full week at a time before a day off. It can lead employees feeling fatigued and disgruntled from spending so much time away from their families. Fortunately for holidaymaking Brits, Tobaruela is confident that not all flights will be cancelled. Unfortunately for holidaymaking Brits, he was warned there could be huge delays because there of severe staff shortages. 2.8 million of us visited the Baelaric Islands last year and the most popular month for tourism is July, which is now likely to be worst affected by the striking.