- The strike being carried out by several transport associations in the Spanish State is having a major impact on the supply of food and industrial enterprises. The Spanish Government has promised subsidies as aid, but the Hiru syndicate has considered that they are not the solution and has called for the involvement of the Basque Government in it.
The authorities are already asking the citizens not to buy more than they need at the points of sale because the supply is "certified". At the same time, however, the employers of the main food companies in the Spanish State have called for an end to the transport strike and their production is in danger. For example, food and drink brands such as Danone, Heineken, Cuétara and other renowned foods and beverages are in difficulty or have had to shut down the machines.
It is precisely that it has brought difficulties to thousands of truckers for more than a week, because they feel that working above the costs is not worth it. Last week a platform with a small representation in the Spanish State called for a general strike, but it is clear that the call has received support among carriers and this Tuesday there are also the most represented associations in protest at the rise in fuel prices.
The automatic review of tariffs is one of the main demands of the Hiru trade union: if the raw material is increased, offer the most expensive service, and vice versa.
“We ask for dignity”
The 500 million subsidies committed by the Spanish Government to the National Road Transport Commission (CNMV) did not seem sufficient for these associations. For the Hiru trade union that has also joined the strike, this interim aid is not the solution: “We are asking for cost-based pricing to be revised and that subsidy makes no sense,” Hiru representative Jon Altuna told Naiz Irratia.
The Sanchez Government’s intention to set limits on fuel prices is not going to be “bad”, says the Tripartite, but it is not the solution: “We want another kind of change, transportation has to have a proper price, to be dignified, we ask for dignity.” The automatic review of tariffs is one of the main demands of the Hiru trade union: if the raw material is increased, offer the most expensive service, and, conversely, if reduced, make transport cheaper.
Hiru has denounced that the Basque Government has left the union of self-employed carriers when it has met with the association Guitrans and representatives of the workers of the ports and logistic platforms. On the contrary, it met with the Government of Navarra, together with Tradisna: “We would like to work together with the administrations and analyse what measures can be taken to encourage transport here,” Altuna explained to Naiz.
Caring for the nearby carrier
They call on the Administration to “take care” of the local carrier and Altuna considers that they have competence to do so: “They can do a lot to ensure that transport has a proper price, that no one works below it, that the price is not lowered, and that there are no subcontracting or bad behavior. The administrations here can do a lot of work on that.”
But the situation is not being easy in his words, because while some take “a large part” of the benefits without having a truck, or through tax evasion and inappropriate or evil behaviors that have their drivers in poor conditions, others are not willing to follow a risky profession for gaining “insignificance”: “The autonomous carrier will disappear under the current conditions and that nearby transport that we consider effective will disappear.”