CCOO and UGT call a general road transport strike to demand early retirement

The CCOO and UGT unions have declared a general strike in the road transport sector to call for the regulation of early retirement for transport professionals. This strike will begin on October 28 and will continue on other days designated for the transport of goods and passengers, such as Black Friday, the December long weekend or the Christmas period.

The call applies to all drivers who provide services in road freight transport, whether it concerns light vehicles or heavy vehicles, road passenger transport, urban public passenger transport and medical transport.

In concrete terms, the strike will take place on the days October 28, November 11, 28 and 29, December 5 and 9 and from December 23 for an indefinite period.

CCOO and UGT defend early retirement in the sector due to the high number of road accidents due to the high age of the drivers, especially those over 55 years old.

Both unions denounce the “systematic blockade” by the Spanish government and various employers’ organizations against the demand to increase the retirement age of drivers.

The unions have explained that they have already taken all possible measures to prevent the strike, such as meetings, both provincial and state level, contacts with all relevant ministries and with various political groups, but no solution has yet been reached.

There are around 250,000 employed truck drivers in Spain, although unions hope self-employed workers will also join the call. so that the figure could reach 500,000 employees, as 70% of workers in the sector are represented in the UGT or CCOO trade unions.