The trade unions CCOO and UGT have formally requested the Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration to recognize reducing factors for the retirement age for employees of ground handling services at airports (handling), as published by El País. The objective is to allow early retirement without this group suffering cuts in their pension amounts.
The measure is aimed at approximately 14,000 people across Spain assigned to direct operational tasks: loading, unloading and transferring luggage and goods, driving special vehicles and runway support. Other 10,000 workers in administrative or commercial passenger service areas are excluded from the request.
At Lanzarote Airport, the total workforce linked to handling services is between 400 and 600 workers, varying according to seasonality and air traffic volume.
The ramp licenses awarded by Aena to provide service to third-party airlines were for the companies Menzies Aviation and Groundforce.
At César Manrique there are also airlines that directly manage their operations and passengers, notably Azul Handling (for Ryanair) and Atlántica Handling (for Binter's inter-island flights).
Of that island total, (between 250 and 400 people) perform strictly runway/ramp functions (luggage movement, loading and unloading, marshals and ground crews), which are precisely the profile to which CC OO and UGT are directing the early retirement request to Social Security without pension penalties. The rest of the staff corresponds to check-in agents, passenger agents and administrative tasks, which are outside said request.
"Continuous physical and psychological wear and tear and permanent noise"
The trade union organizations argue that operational staff endure continuous physical and psychological wear and tear resulting from forced postures, repetitive movements, constant handling of loads, and shifts with changing or night schedules.
To this situation, they add the impact of environmental and health factors, such as permanent noise, abrupt temperature changes, and inhalation of polluting gases emitted by aircraft engines and ground equipment. Due to these circumstances, the sector registers accident and work incapacity rates higher than the average, without current preventive measures managing to completely neutralize the hardship and toxicity of the job.
The request has been registered unilaterally by the unions, as it does not have the backing of the employers' association Aseata, which rejects the proposal due to the extra cost that the compensatory increase in social security contributions would imply.
According to what was reported by El País, this new procedure coincides with union discontent over the delays by Social Security in resolving previous files —such as those for road transport of goods and passengers—, which has led CCOO to warn of mobilizations and a possible indefinite strike if the Executive does not speed up the foreseen legal deadlines.
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