Lorry drivers are going on strike again next Monday in protest against the price of fuel and other reasons, with Christmas less than two months away.
The last time they went on strike for the same reasons was back in March when it caused major problems in the country’s distribution and supply network.
The Plataforma para la Defensa del Transporte, explained that the strike was also about the unfair pressure applied by the big distribution companies on self-employed drivers. Accordingly, the nationwide strike will come into force next Monday at 00.01h.
The decision to go on strike was made with 86% of their members in favour, protesting that road-haulage contractors had not stuck to the conditions accorded within the Ley de Costes brought in by the Central Government in the spring after a 20-day strike.
Manuel Hernández, who leads the association, has condemned the surge in prices that his lorry drivers are subjected to, which he calculates as much as 30%. This increase, he claims, is leading to between 200 and 250 road-haulage companies or self-employed lorry drivers to go out of business.
Sr. Hernández’s association is not part of the Comité Nacional del Transporte por Carretera (CNTC), which is the entity that brokered the deal with the Central Government. This is a problem for the Plataforma para la Defensa del Transporte because the Government has always insisted on negotiating with the official (legal) representatives of the sector; not with the Plataforma.
Sr. Hernández, on the other hand, claims that his entity represents a multitude of self-employed lorry drivers and pymes (small & medium businesses) thus the Plataforma’s clout is indisputable.
The food-supply chain (large supermarket chains and distribution hubs, etc) demand that the Government takes measures to guarantee against shortages and support for those lorry drivers who choose to continue working during the strike.
Lastly, the law put into force after the accord between the Government and the sector forbids that drivers be forced to work at a loss and that the law contains a system for reporting such cases, explained the Minister for Transportes, Movilidad y Agenda Urbana, Raquel Sánchez.
(News: Spain)