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 Daily news from the Canaries and the islands' biggest English language newspaper on-line Air transport Strike threats Spain needs 1,200 more air traffic controllers to be able to move the number of planes that are currently using its airspace. 
He denied that there had been a work to rule over the Christmas holidays and blamed the delays on AENA for poor planning as they were expecting a drop in air traffic of 17 per cent but the actual reduction was only 2.7 per cent. Torrens added that throughout 2009, the Canarian air traffic control service had been operating with 25 per cent fewer personnel than the previous year. After recent disclosures of huge wages in the press, Torrens affirmed that the Spanish controllers were paid, “more or less the same as any of their European colleagues,” but emphasised that because of the lack of personnel they were forced to work extra hours, although he admitted that they were, “well paid”. The regional government’s Minister for Transport, Juan Ramón Hernández gave assurances that the Canarian government, “will not tolerate” a repeat of the events at Christmas and asked that the Spanish Transport Ministry sorted out the situation as soon as possible as what happened over the holidays, “is intolerable” given the importance of air travel to the economy of the islands. In reply to criticism that the air traffic controllers had damaged the Canarian economy, Torrens affirmed, “we are aware of the harm that we could do to the Islands, we are fighting for that too, we’re Canarians as well”, however he underlined that what the workers cannot do is work over and above their limits, nor could they go against the limits laid down by international regulations. Representatives of USCA gave an assurance that Easter flights within Spain would not be interrupted by any action of theirs. The unions only offered an increase in productivity in exchange for more money and as they already earn an average €334,000 each per year, the Spanish government has decided to act, announcing a new law to “control” the controllers. Under the new law, AENA would regain management of the air traffic control service which is currently managed by the controllers themselves. The service will be open to be put out to tender and more AFIS (automatic computer controlled services) will be installed in the smaller airports which would need a technician but not a fully qualified air traffic controller. The Development Minister, José Blanco, has been warning for months what would occur if USCA failed to come to any agreement. For the next three years, strikes and work to rules will be considered a breach of the law, their working week is to be redefined and the number of overtime hours which can be worked will be reduced to 80 per year as set out in the workers’ statute and they will be paid at a normal rate of around €117 per hour instead of the current €240-350. Air traffic controllers may now be transferred from one airport to another and if they refuse, the refusal will be considered a serious work offence and may leave the individual open to dismissal. The announcement made it clear that AENA’s costs, “are the highest in Europe” and blamed the increasing costs of the air traffic controllers wages. The result of these, “disproportionate wages” is that Spanish airports charge more than any other European airport, a “ridiculous position” given the country’s dependence on tourism as a prime economic motor. The union immediately announced that they intend to take whatever legal measures are necessary to defend their current position, rejecting the methods of “imposition” devised by the government, but repeated their promise to maintain the necessary services over Easter. However they have agreed to return to the negotiating table where Blanco assured them, “we are always willing to talk, but we have been trying to reach an agreement now for the last five years since the last collective bargaining agreement expired. We want more efficiency and that the navigation of our air space is more financially competitive,” he confirmed. This article appears in the print edition 610 of Island Connections
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