Ryanair baggage handler strike called at Spain's main airports

Top Spanish work union UGT has called a walkout during the busiest month of the summer for staff at Azul Handling, Ryanair's ground operations subsidiary in Spain, over worker sanctions and the abuse of overtime.

The stoppages have been scheduled for August 15th, 16th and 17th. Friday August 15th is a public holiday in Spain, which will mean an increase in travel during an already very busy holiday period.

The strikes are then scheduled to continue every Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday until the end of this year, the union said in a statement.

The huelga (strike in Spanish) will be in time slots, taking place between 5 am and 9 am; midday and 3 pm; and 9 pm and midnight on the scheduled strike days.

The strikes are due to affect all Ryanair bases in Spain, which include Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Seville, Málaga, Alicante, Ibiza, Palma de Mallorca, Girona, Tenerife South, Lanzarote, and Santiago de Compostela.

Last week, the UGT called for 22 strike days throughout the year at Madrid’s Barajas Airport only, but now this has been extended to all bases.

The union criticises the company for failing to create stable employment and for not ensuring working hours for permanent part-time employees. According to them, there has been a "constant violations of labour rights”.

LISTED: The new flights to and from Spain this summer

UGT also complained about staff being “coerced” to work overtime and said that "in some cases disproportionate sanctions " are issued to those who refuse. For this, staff can be issued punishments of up to 36 days without employment or pay.

The union also believes that Ryanair repeatedly fails to comply with the rulings of the Joint Commission of the Sectoral Agreement on guarantees and bonuses, and also imposes illegal restrictions on return to work after medical discharge and on adjusting working hours for work-life balance.

UGT wants "a real negotiation process" that will improve the working conditions of the more than 3,000 affected at these bases across the country.

Federal secretary of the FeSMC-UGT Air Union, José Manuel Pérez Grande added that Azul Handling maintains "a strategy of precariousness and pressure on the workforce that violates basic labour rights and systematically ignores union demands”.

The union maintains that the responsibility for the stoppage "lie solely and exclusively with the company and its reckless conduct toward the workforce”.

Before formalising the strike, the union has requested mediation before the Interconfederal Mediation and Arbitration Service (SIMA).

If you’re due to fly from any of the above airports from mid-August onwards, we recommend checking with Ryanair beforehand to see if your flight will be affected or not.

Ryanair has already made the news headlines in Spain in 2025 for its war of words with Spanish airport operator Aena, which it accuses of charging them excessively high airport fees.

The Irish low-cost company has already 800,000 seats and 12 routes from smaller regional airports as a result and has threatened to slash even more under the premise that these fees make flying to some Spanish airports unprofitable.

However, Ryanair has added 1.5 million seats to larger and more popular airports such as Madrid, Málaga, and Alicante, consolidating itself as the most used airline in Spain.

Earlier this summer, ground staff for rival easyJet also went on a three-day strike in Spain, leading to more than 100 flight cancellations. They have threatened further strike action this August unless working conditions are improved.