Madrid Barajas Descends Into Chaos After Security Officers Launch ‘Illegal’ Strike
- Madrid Barajas Airport descended into chaos on Sunday after just 21 security officers went on strike. The firm that employs them says the walkout is illegal and is threatening to file a lawsuit to get them back to work.
Chaos descended upon Madrid Barajas International Airport on Sunday after security officers went on strike in a dispute with the private company that runs the TSA-style security lanes at Spain’s main hub airport.
Passengers described finding themselves in long lines to get through the security checkpoint, with the main ‘landside’ departures concourse quickly becoming a crowded mess as security checks ground to a halt.
Trablisa, the security firm that employs the striking workers, has declared the walkout illegal and is filing a lawsuit in an attempt to force the striking workers back to work.
Surprisingly, Sunday’s chaos was apparently caused by just 21 of the more than 850 security agents employed by Trablisa at Madrid Barajas going on strike.
The workers want to amend a previously agreed collective bargaining agreement, but in the run-up to the walkout, local officials in Madrid had declared that the airport was critical national infrastructure, allowing it to set a minimum service level.
In this case, officials said the minimum service level should be 100%, effectively barring a strike from taking place.
That ruling did not, however, dissuade a small number of security officers who were able to cause chaos at the airport on September 14.
“Trablisa has requested the Regional Institute of Mediation and Arbitration of the Community of Madrid to be declared illegal and abusive for a multitude of formal and material defects,” the security firm slammed.
“The company emphasizes that the call is absolutely illegal since it does not comply with formal legal requirements and violates the duty of social peace derived from previous agreements.”
Spain’s national airport operator, Aena, said in a statement: “Due to the staff strike call by the security personnel of the company Trablisa at AS Madrid-Barajas Airport, the times for passing through security control may be increased.”
The statement added: “We apologize for the inconvenience.”
Spanish flag carrier Iberia advised passengers to arrive at the airport as early as possible. The airline is also allowing passengers to check their luggage in for free in order to ease pressure at the security checkpoints.
Can passengers claim EU compensation for missed flights?
The European Union has some of the best airline passenger rights in the world, including cash compensation for passengers who have their flights cancelled or are significantly delayed in reaching their destination.
Compensation is, however, only payable if the delay or cancellation wasn’t due to what lawmakers describe as an ‘extraordinary circumstance.’ Whether a strike by airport workers is deemed an extraordinary circumstance is, though, unclear.
In previous legal rulings, a wildcat strike by an airline’s own staff has been deemed not to be an extraordinary circumstance, but a third-party, like the walkout by Trablisa workers in Madrid on Sunday, might not qualify a passenger to claim compensation.
In this case, the claim would have to be assessed on a case-by-case basis and, undoubtedly, would end up in court for a judge to decide whether the Trablisa strike in, indeed, an extraordinary circumstance.
