Trade unions CCOO and UGT have called for denouncing the "precarious situation" of drivers in the sector and underlining the need to improve working conditions. The HIRU trade union criticised the fact that the demands made by the three trade unions were "very short". In Hego Euskal Herria there are about 50,000 workers employed in the sector.
In order to improve the working conditions of carriers, the CCOO and UGT trade unions have announced strikes in road transport. Stops shall be held for six days: 28 October, 11, 18 and 29 November, and 5 and 9 December. If the situation is not resolved, an indefinite strike is planned from 23 December.
The conflict has its origins in the retirement age of workers in the transport sector. The trade unions have negotiated with the employers for one month and their main demand is that the carrier's profession be recognised as "dangerous". In this way, it is intended to establish reducing coefficients that allow workers to have access to early retirement. UGT and CCOO have raised the possibility of partial retirement in collective agreements. In other words, young drivers should replace workers who are eligible for retirement by means of a relay contract.
The Hiru trade union has stressed that the CCOO and UGT approach remains "very short" considering that the effect of the reducing coefficients has been undetermined. The trade union secretary, Alberto Núñez, pointed out that the self-employed carriers do not have a relay contract and that the measure proposed is therefore not going to affect them. That is why the HIRU trade union is calling for a specific retirement age of 60, in order to "obtain the justice of the transporters". Nuñez explained that it is not "reasonable" for drivers, about 67 years old, to lead children and the elderly.
Accidents at work
The reasons for security are also fundamental. According to data from the International Labour Organisation (ILO), after 55 years of age, the risk of a serious occupational accident is threefold in the transport sector. This year in Euskal Herria ten carriers have died in accidents at work, most of them between the ages of 54 and 59. “This highlights the direct relationship between age and occupational accidents and reinforces the need to advance retirement age,” Núñez explained.