Transport strike in Spain increases supply pressure

The strike of the Spanish airline, which has been affecting Spain's supply chain for several days, is putting many sectors in trouble in an already tense context due to rising prices and energy.

Strykers responding to requests from a single minority organization have been calling for action since Monday to deal with the rise in diesel prices, putting them in a “catastrophic” situation.

Since Wednesday, the movement has intensified with multiple blockades and strong actions, mainly in industrial or commercial areas and ports.

These “violent and undemocratic” acts “are causing serious damage to the supply chains of sectors such as the industrial, commercial and agri-food sectors,” and has already been affected by the bottleneck caused by the resumption of economic activity after the coronavirus pandemic, the CEOE (Spanish Federation of Business Organizations), the main employer organization in Spain.

As a result of the strike, the National Federation of Dairy Industries (Fenil) announced on Thursday that many of its affiliates had stopped production. Milk was “perishable” and “must be collected every day”, which is impossible without the free movement of trucks, regretted Luis Calabozo, the general manager.

The government of Pedro Sánchez also condemned the blockade.

“We are seeing a handful of violent acts that prevent other truck drivers from working to ensure food and basic necessities during difficult times,” said a spokesman for the left-wing government, Isabel Rodríguez, on Twitter.

Management has seen a growing social unrest since the end of the year due to rising prices, which is reflected in inflation, which reached a record 35 percent in February in just 7 years.

Due to this situation, two major unions, the CCOO (Workers' Committee) and the General Workers' Union (UGT), called for a national strike on rising prices on Wednesday, March 23. The far-right party Vox asked its supporters to hold protests against the government in front of local governments on Saturday.

On Wednesday, management promised measures to lower energy and fuel prices, but did not reveal details.

Government President Pedro Sánchez (Pedro Sánchez) launched a European tour on Wednesday, calling for support from several counterparties for the joint response of the European Union to these price increases. In the absence of an agreement, Madrid will take its own action.

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