Spain/Portugal/Gibraltar - Spain General Strike 29th September

This news will change day by day, hour by hour, but right now, because only 29% of Spanish workers say they will observe the national general strike called for the 29th, the unions seem determined to prevent almost everyone from getting to work or traveling at all.

The stats that most affect our community of flyers: There will be no international flights that day. On domestic routes of over 500 kilometers, there will be only one flight in each direction. No long distance trains will run. Only 25% of commuter trains will run.

These levels of "minimum services" are being contested by the Socialist government and there will be some give-and-take before next Wednesday's strike.

Updates here. ¡Buen viaje! :(

Well, although the news is not good for me as I am scheduled to arrive in Madrid from London on the 29th, I appreciate the advance warning. Time to get on the phone!

One question: Is this strike only for the day - in other words, would it be safe to book for the 30th?

Thanks for your help.

I found this article in today's El Pais (run through Google Translator):

http://translate.google.com/translate?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.elpais.com%2Farticulo %2Fespana%2FFomento%2Fpropone%2Fservicios%2Fminimo s%2F25%2Ftransporte%2Faereo%2Fferroviario%2Felpepu esp%2F20100921elpepunac_1%2FTes&sl=es&tl=en&hl=&ie=ISO-8859-1

The paragraph on air transport dovetails with what spainflyer has posted, unfortunately. It sounds like the government side wants 25% of international flights, but that the unions propose none. :(

One question: Is this strike only for the day - in other words, would it be safe to book for the 30th?


If past strikes are any indication -- yes, safe to book for the 30th. Strike runs from midnight to midnight, and actually may begin to peter out in the late afternoon or early evening of the strike day.

As I said, the government is contesting these minimums and I will post updates as the Spanish press report them. :confused:

Spanish media are reporting that government authorities and the unions reached an agreement at 4:30 this morning on minimum services to be provided on general strike day, 29th September.

With regard to transport:

20% of flights to and from European Union countries will operate
40% of intercontinental flights will operate
10% of flights within peninsular Spain will operate
50% of flights between peninsular Spain and the islands (Balearic and Canaries) will operate
20% of the AVE high speed trains will operate
25% of commuter trains will operate, and 30% at peak times

No mention is made – that I can find – of regular train service, which may be entirely cancelled.

Right now, the French general strike is causing problems for Spanish travellers, with dozens of flights to and over France cancelled.

We apologize for any inconvenience and buen viaje! :(

Spanish media are reporting that government authorities and the unions reached an agreement at 4:30 this morning on minimum services to be provided on general strike day, 29th September.
I was able to re-schedule my 29 September LHR-MAD flight to the 30th. Thanks again spainflyer for the initial warning ^

I have a question regarding the negotiations: are provisions made for emergency service providers (police, fire, hospitals)?

I hope that everyone gets through the strike with minimal impact.

Oh, yes. Even in the worst of general strikes (1988) fire and police services were uninterrupted. Hospitals in general schedule only time-sensitive and emergency services, however.

I think this time around (this is a guess) you will find the strike petering out after lunch (Spanish lunch -- about 5 pm).

¡Buena suerte! :)

I'm sposed to go MAD to Newark on CO on 29th... called CO and they know nothing.. would think that if flights are allocated that the airlines will have some notice for elite flyers...

10 of us are due to fly from England on the morning of the 29th to Spain - should we look to reschedule to travel the day before or is there a possability of the strike being called off.:confused:

Annabel – absolutely no chance of the strike being called off. It is not like an industrial action where labour is trying to get one thing and management another, and they are trying to reach a compromise. This is a protest against the government’s announced fiscal and budgetary reforms which, for obvious reasons, cannot be reversed. Madrid has already agreed them with Brussels and the IMF, under some severe pressure.

I have seen nothing that indicates how flights will be selected to run or be cancelled, so you may be lucky.

Buzzman – it appears that CO has just one flight MAD – EWR on that day (some days they have two) so you might be lucky. But remember, ground staff, baggage handlers, caterers, cleaners will be on strike, so even if CO wants to operate the flight, they may not be able to. If CO in Houston cannot tell you anything, it might be worth a call to CO at the Madrid Airport -- + 34 91 305 44 43 – to ask if they know anything. Best time to call is about 8 am Madrid time, just before they open the check-in counters.

Good luck and safe travels!!

Thanks for the comment guys - think we will go on Tuesday :):)

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Buzzman – it appears that CO has just one flight MAD – EWR on that day (some days they have two) so you might be lucky. But remember, ground staff, baggage handlers, caterers, cleaners will be on strike, so even if CO wants to operate the flight, they may not be able to. If CO in Houston cannot tell you anything, it might be worth a call to CO at the Madrid Airport -- + 34 91 305 44 43 – to ask if they know anything. Best time to call is about 8 am Madrid time, just before they open the check-in counters.

Good luck and safe travels!!

Thanks but it's a UA ticket and they issued a travel advisory for Madrid... so I was able to book a day earlier on UA metal through FRA... better for me anyway as the connection to west coast is better... but thanks for the thought!!! :)

Buzzman and Annabel have their situations sorted out. That's great. For others, the news is not good. I said this would change by the hour, and it is -- we now have the news that ground handling will be at 25% for those airports that are operating, effectively making that the limit on the number of flights that go out or land, I would guess.

Also, the national police union (SUP) has stated that its members will not use force against the pickets -- which often disrupt businesses that want to operate-- since their members would not want to oppose those who "defend a better life for all of us."

I still believe that overall this will be a light strike compared to some we have had in the past, but among the areas that will suffer most are transport, since it is easy to disrupt.

¡Buen viaje a todos! :(

Mr. travelmad478 had a flight booked from Madrid to Geneva on that date, and just got notified by Easyjet that he could change his flight if he wanted. He has now switched the flight to the 30th, but I'm a little anxious that (a) the strike could go for longer than the one day planned, or (b) even if it doesn't, the aviation disruption could spill over into the next days and screw up his flight anyway.

I have no experience with these European strikes, so what should we expect?

My wife and I are scheduled on AA departing JFK (New York) on September 29 (7:00PM) and arriving BCN on September 30 (8:45AM local time). AA has not cancelled the flight but has issued a notice that we are able to reschedule, at our option, to a flight departing between 9/27 - 10/1. As I understand it, the strike is just for the 29th. Since we land on the 30th, I'm thinking our flight will land as scheduled (and baggage handled as normal). One concern is that AA may cancel our flight last minute leaving us to scramble. Is that a reasonable concern? I'd love some advice and guidance. Bottom line: Should we re-schedule or not. Thanks!

My wife and I are scheduled on AA departing JFK (New York) on September 29 (7:00PM) and arriving BCN on September 30 (8:45AM local time). AA has not cancelled the flight but has issued a notice that we are able to reschedule, at our option, to a flight departing between 9/27 - 10/1. As I understand it, the strike is just for the 29th. Since we land on the 30th, I'm thinking our flight will land as scheduled (and baggage handled as normal). One concern is that AA may cancel our flight last minute leaving us to scramble. Is that a reasonable concern? I'd love some advice and guidance. Bottom line: Should we re-schedule or not. Thanks!

Everything I have read or heard here is that it is only 24 hours... I think you should probably be ok arriving on the 30th... but there may be some delays as many flights going out and lots of bags to sort out...

On another note, I'm unhappy with LH... they allowed my lady to rebook to WAW, but made her pay the difference between booking classes... and only waiving the 50 euro change fee... this difference cost her 200 euros.. seems like LH is determined to profit by others misfortune... UA on the other hand pretty much gave me the choice of flights and no rebooking charges whatsoever..

The strike is for the 29th – no danger of it spilling over to the 30th, even to 1 or 2 am on the 30th. Yes, these continental (not Continental!) European strikes are a bit strange. As someone said – “in Europe the people go on strike against their government, which is them.”

In any case mfinn, if the AA flight takes off it will be able to land and be handled normally. I would expect that all transatlantic flights leaving North America on the afternoon or evening of the 29th would run because they arrive in Spain on the morning of the 30th, after the strike is over.

Ditto, Ms travelmad478, almost no danger that the strike will affect Mr travelmad’s flight to GEN on the 30th, except that there will be a lot of stranded passengers from the 29th trying to get on the flight. I suggest he do OLCI now (you can do this on EZY), and arrive at the airport at a reasonable time – perhaps 1.5 hours ahead of departure. That should be enough, especially if he has speedy boarding – there is usually no queue for this class.

Safe travels to all!! ^

In any case mfinn, if the AA flight takes off it will be able to land and be handled normally. I would expect that all transatlantic flights leaving North America on the afternoon or evening of the 29th would run because they arrive in Spain on the morning of the 30th, after the strike is over.
^

Spainflyer and Buzzman - In your opinion, what factors would possibly lead AA to cancel this flight? What is the probability of those factors actually occurring? Sorry for being so anal but neither my wife nor I are experienced international travelers and we have a cruise departing Barcelona on the 1st (for our 25th wedding anniversary. Woohoo!)

Ditto, Ms travelmad478, almost no danger that the strike will affect Mr travelmad’s flight to GEN on the 30th, except that there will be a lot of stranded passengers from the 29th trying to get on the flight. I suggest he do OLCI now (you can do this on EZY), and arrive at the airport at a reasonable time – perhaps 1.5 hours ahead of departure. That should be enough, especially if he has speedy boarding – there is usually no queue for this class.
Thanks very much for your response--he has already OLCI'd and printed his BP so I expect he should be fine (assuming no delays).

Spainflyer and Buzzman - In your opinion, what factors would possibly lead AA to cancel this flight? What is the probability of those factors actually occurring? Sorry for being so anal but neither my wife nor I are experienced international travelers and we have a cruise departing Barcelona on the 1st (for our 25th wedding anniversary. Woohoo!)


At the moment, I don't see anything that would cause cancellation on the 30th... possible delay and inconvenience, but cancellation, probably not..

Hi every1,

just come across this site and would greatly appreciate any info or advice any could offer on the 29th.

we are due to fly from dublin to barca with aer lingus at 6.40am on the 29th and the rest of our party flyin out later around 7pm from dublin on the same airline. Would any1 hazard a guess on the likihood we will get to fly out?? The other main airline in ireland ryanair have come out saying they expect all flights to go ahead but not allowing ppl check in bags, only carry on. im not sure how feasible that is to say they expect all flights to get out even if they dont allow check in of baggage?

Either way we are flying out with aer lingus so hoping any one had some insight into our chances of flying out. thanks in advance

I just arrived at the Hilton Barcelona and asked about the impact of the strike. Short answer: they're not really sue how they can operate the hotel on the 29th, although the pleasant check-in staff said he had already signed on to be at work on the 29th ...

Mfinn – I would count on the flight operating – departing North America on the evening of the 29th and landing in BCN on the morning of the 30th. Looking at that itinerary, I would be fairly sure that it is operated by Iberia. All the more reason to expect that it will run normally as Iberia is still state-controlled (although not exclusively state-owned) and it is in the interest of the country that its flights run. I would not expect any problems.

Viper006 – I think you should not expect your flight to operate. Only 20% of European flights will take off or land that day and it would be very good luck if yours did. As for RyanAir, I think we can put their optimism down to their desire to sell tickets. There have been many, many situations in the past which they have not fulfilled the conditions of carriage and if this one is added to the list, little harm done, from the airline’s point of view. :(

hi spain flyer,

thanks for the insight. Its my understanding though that at most only 20% of the workers are in fact expected to strike with most unwilling to lose out on a days pay striking... if this is anywhere near the case it would appear that while there will be significant disruption expected there is a chance the dispruption may well not be as bad as expected..Am i being too optimistic here or is there a chance of this not being as bad as predicted?

Ive also heard there is still ongoing meetings between the gov and unions to prevent the strike from occuring in the first though this may well be all rumour though so im taking this with a pinch of salt?

Mfinn – I would count on the flight operating – departing North America on the evening of the 29th and landing in BCN on the morning of the 30th. Looking at that itinerary, I would be fairly sure that it is operated by Iberia. All the more reason to expect that it will run normally as Iberia is still state-controlled (although not exclusively state-owned) and it is in the interest of the country that its flights run. I would not expect any problems.


Iberia? Its an AA flight.

hi spain flyer,

thanks for the insight. Its my understanding though that at most only 20% of the workers are in fact expected to strike with most unwilling to lose out on a days pay striking... if this is anywhere near the case it would appear that while there will be significant disruption expected there is a chance the dispruption may well not be as bad as expected..Am i being too optimistic here or is there a chance of this not being as bad as predicted?

Ive also heard there is still ongoing meetings between the gov and unions to prevent the strike from occuring in the first though this may well be all rumour though so im taking this with a pinch of salt?

This is a big deal over here.. there are billboards and posters all over the country... there are not going to be any last minute negotiations to "prevent the strike from occuring... " it is going to happen and those who have the day off know who they are as well as those who have to work... remember it's not just transport... but hotels and other workers whether in travel business or not..

Yes, Buzzman is right. The strike will go on and even if 100% of the workers show up at any one airline or airport, only 20% of the flights within Europe will operate. That is the figure that has been agreed between the government and the unions.

The difference is the workers who show up get paid; those that don't, don't.

As a point of reference, BA has formally canceled two of their four LHR-MAD flights on the 29th, including the flight that I was originally booked on. They do show the other two, one in the morning and one in the evening) as operating. It will be interesting to see if those two flights actually do go as scheduled.

The other main airline in ireland ryanair have come out saying they expect all flights to go ahead but not allowing ppl check in bags, only carry on. im not sure how feasible that is to say they expect all flights to get out even if they dont allow check in of baggage?

As I predicted, this was totally unrealistic of Ryanair, and they managed to sell tens of thousands of tickets which they will take their sweet time to re-book (forget re-imbursement). Ryanair knew seven days ago exactly what the conditions would be because the unions and the government had agreed them. Now they express regret and I count over 200 flights to and from Spain cancelled on their web site. Totally irresponsible but totally Ryanair.

Reports this morning are of the Madrid Airport virtually empty, with no one staffing check-in counters. During the night strikers managed to block all traffic to Madrid's main wholesale market (MercaMadrid) and the highway leading to it -- which is also the highway to the airport coming from the south and west. This blockade was reportedly removed by police this morning.

Local buses are reported running between one and two hours late, and in Seville the main highway to Madrid (N-IV) has been blocked and all traffic is stopped.

All in all a good day for those already in Spain to enjoy the sights on foot, and those not yet in Spain to relax and wait until tomorrow, when all this will be over!

As a point of reference, BA has formally canceled two of their four LHR-MAD flights on the 29th, including the flight that I was originally booked on. They do show the other two, one in the morning and one in the evening) as operating. It will be interesting to see if those two flights actually do go as scheduled.Update: BA did cancel one of the two remaining flights (the morning departure), however, their 20:00 depature did operate. It left and arrived thirty minutes late.

My guess, based on spainflyer's reports, is that the strikers began to return to work after the daytime demonstrations were completed (I watched coverage on the BBC, and although there seemed to be some violence, most of the activity shown on TV was of well-organized marches through the central city streets).