Canary Islands Easter travel alert as Brits flying to Tenerife and Lanzarote face chaos
Brits flying with Jet2 and easyJet may be affected.
Brits preparing to head to the Canary Islands over the Easter period may face heavy travel disruption, as airport ground handling staff are to join industrial action. Check-in, baggage handling, and aircraft assistance staff are going on strike from March 27 after talks between unions and employers failed.
Workers from Groundforce and Menzies Aviation are due to take action, which could affect airlines including easyJet, Jet2, and Aer Lingus. Unions are calling on over 1,500 employees across the islands to go on strike.
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Unión General de Trabajadores (UGT) said there will be "two parallel strikes" with no known end date as yet.
Groundforce strikes begin today, March 27, at airports in Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura, and Lanzarote and will take place on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.
Staff will walk out three times a day: in the early morning, midday, and late evening, meaning they'll stop working between 5am and 7am, 11am and 5pm, and 10pm until 12am.
The company handles ground operations for numerous aircraft between landing and departure.
Menzies Aviation strikes affect staff at Tenerife North and South airports, and Gran Canaria. All-day walkouts are planned for March 28 and 29, and April 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6.
Menzies oversees ramp and passenger operations at airports including check-in and boarding, baggage handling, refuelling, cleaning, and transportation.
This comes amid ongoing negotiations over a potential redundancy scheme at Gran Canaria Airport, which would reduce full-time contracts to part-time for up to two years.
The move has been strongly opposed by unions, who question its jurisdiction as companies continue to rely on temporary staff and overtime.
