The Works Council of the Tourist Centers has announced its intention to go on strike from August 15 for, as they consider, "dignity". The representatives of the CACT employees have pointed to "a series of breaches of the agreement" by the company as the reason for this decision, apart from the "little respect they have for the work of César Manrique and the lack of respect they have for the workers".
The representatives of the CACT employees have pointed out that in 2014 they reached "a historic agreement", the Collective Agreement for the Tourist Centers" for a validity of 7 years. Something for which "the president went out at 8 in the morning showing his joy because we reached a great agreement". However, they have denounced that "barely five days had passed since the signing" when "the company's management informed the workers that they had to make several changes to the agreement because there were errors": A fact that, according to the Committee, the employees did not accept and for which the company "began to remove both vacations and the compensation bonus from the workers' payroll, implying a substantial annual economic loss" for each of them. They have pointed out that "the total amount of money not paid during 2014, 2015, 2016 and so far in 2017 implies a debt of approximately 450,000 euros".
"We were forced to sit down and go to court", they pointed out, explaining that, finally, "the TSJC ruled in favor of the workers". However, "the company's tantrum when it receives the sentence is so strong" that it decided to "deduct from the month of April 2017 from all workers the amount of 35.19 euros from a bonus that the collective agreement in its wording says verbatim: cannot be compensated, absorbed, or modified by the sole will of the company".
"The workers have maintained patience for three years awaiting the judgment of the Courts. But it is more than evident that the administrators of the Centers are only interested in provocation and lack of interest in defending the public", they pointed out in a letter, signed by CCOO, UGT and IC, which invites workers to join the strike.
"Contracts are being made fraudulently"
However, "it is not an economic issue, of course, because if it were economic, we would have gone on strike two years ago", explained the Works Council to La Voz, assuring that "what they are doing in the Tourist Centers is a drain and it is a company of the Cabildo". "We do not understand how it is allowed that this type of precarious contracts, contracts by the hour, with completely degrading working conditions are made", they pointed out, also pointing out that these contracts "are being made fraudulently".
On the other hand, "the issue is that we are realizing that chapter 1, the one for personnel, is being fattened", they denounced, explaining that "expenses are being inflated". "We greatly fear that with these numbers, with the camouflage of numbers they carry, they will finally end up blaming the workers for the losses due to their mismanagement", added the Works Council. However, "the workers gave up a payment to retire colleagues, because the excuse was the over-dimensioning of the staff", they pointed out, complaining that this reason for over-dimensioning of the staff was given at the time and that now they realize "how personnel expenses, two years later, have increased by more than one million euros".
They demand "to stop hiring" until they have a list of positions
"We demand that hiring be stopped until a list of job positions is made, because there must be a criterion when hiring, as well as a criterion when creating positions", the Works Council of the CACT pointed out in the face of the creation of jobs and the "fattening" of personnel expenses. "They do not have a clear vision of the positions that are needed", they pointed out, giving as an example what was done, in their opinion, "in a hurry, because the Yellow House had to be opened". In this sense, they explained that "four positions of informers" were created for the Yellow House and that, "a year later, none of them are there, only the shop assistant working". "Now, for example, they invented that an architect is needed", they added as another example of their complaint.
On the other hand, the representatives of the CACT workers have pointed out that "the agreement is also being violated in the article on hiring, because "they skip the law with respect to the fact that the positions have to be offered for internal promotion, and they are already taking them directly to external promotion". Positions that, according to the Committee, as "a list of job positions has not been made, we do not know if they are necessary or not".
That is why, in the opinion of the Committee, "those workers run the risk that another manager will come and say: look, I don't need so many here, therefore, to the street", adding that this creation of positions could also "continue to inflate personnel expenses". "It seems that is what they intend", they added.
"It is coercing the colleagues of the night watch service"
The Works Council has also denounced that to assign the positions from the company "they change the bases to their convenience". "There are many complaints from colleagues and some complaints from people who have presented themselves and have challenged the bases because they change them". "For example, positions have been put out to tender a month before, and that is no coincidence, it is for something, because this island is small", they pointed out.
On the other hand, it has pointed out that "the company is coercing the colleagues of the night watch service", sending them "a letter telling them that, either they move to another center, or the compensation is so much". In this sense, they have explained that the agreement has an article in which it is stated that "they can change your functions or they can send you" but that "it does not necessarily have to be accompanied by a letter of compensation, like threats".
"And it is not only the threats to the colleagues" is what they want to express from the Works Council, but they also denounce a privatization. "As it is said in the letter that is sent to the colleagues and the Committee, that task of surveillance is going to be privatized" "to hand it over to a private security company", in the positions that correspond to Jameos del Agua and Jardín de Cactus.
It assures that the company "denigrates the Centers"
"We are tired of being ignored", declared the Works Council of the CACT, pointing out the fact that "no letter has been answered during the last six months". "We have more than 100 letters pending response both the Works Council and the workers individually", they pointed out.
"They are small things for which the worker becomes indignant" and "it is the lack of tact that this company has with the worker", explained one of the representatives of the employees about the multiple reasons why they propose to go on strike.
"We are tired of being used, with the issue of the Cave, with the issue of removing the stone from César Manrique, for example, or denigrating the Centers as they are denigrating them when they have no rhyme or reason", they denounced, pointing out that "the spirit that César had we are losing". "Thanks to the workers who keep it alive and we are always vigilant, because this is already an unbearable situation with these people", they concluded from the Works Council.
