Spain and France: Travel strikes planned for August and September

Our travel guide is updated as soon as a new European strike is announced.

Strikes are a regular occurrence in Europe, as employees withhold their labour to fight for better pay and conditions.
Walkouts are sometimes planned months ahead but others are announced last minute, showing that it always pays to check before you travel.
Luckily, we have gathered all of the strike information together below.
Read on to find out where and when are walkouts taking place.
If your flight or train is cancelled or delayed, you will be entitled to a new ticket or compensation. Read our guide for the full details.
Pilots and cabin crew of the airline Discover have voted in favour of strike action in two separate ballots.
They will stage walkouts if the flight company, a subsidiary of Lufthansa, does not meet their demands over pay and working conditions.
This means unlimited strikes could now take place on Discover flights.
The airline has a fleet of 27 planes operating routes from Frankfurt, where it is based, and Munich to holiday destinations around Europe and overseas.
Italy’s transport sector is forbidden from going on strike between 27 July and 5 September, when most Italians take their holidays, meaning disruption at the height of the summer is unlikely.
Security staff strikes at Alicante-Elche airport in Spain have been extended.
Originally a five-day strike from 1-4 August, further dates have now been added: 15, 16, 17, 18, 30 and 31 August.
The airport serving the Costa Blanca will be affected between 8.30am-9.30am and 6pm-7pm local time.
British holiday company Jet2, which uses the airport for its package holidays, posted on its website: “The strike is supported by security services at the airport and will affect congestion at security control.” They advised passengers to arrive at the airport in plenty of time.
However airport operator Aena said there have yet to be significant delays to Alicante’s operations.
Trains in Scotland could be delayed or cancelled if proposed strikes go ahead.
ScotRail’s 1,300 drivers are going to vote on whether to go on strike or take other action. They are in a pay dispute with union Aslef.
ScotRail runs trains between big tourist destinations like Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen and Inverness.
Dates for the potential strikes have not been announced but they could affect the Edinburgh Fringe Festival which happens in August.
Workers on France’s Autoroutes du Sud (ASF) and Vinci motorways have begun a summer of strikes in protest over falling staff numbers.
Weekend walkouts earlier this month hit holidaymakers heading out on their first trips of the summer break.
It is not yet clear whether further strike action will take place in the coming weeks.
Paris airports were threatened by strike action ahead of the Olympic Games, with unions calling a walkout on 17 July – just 10 days before the sporting event begins.
However, the strike was called off at the last minute on Tuesday after workers reached a deal on pay. They were calling for bonuses offered to some personnel to be applied across the board.
Flights at both Roissy-Charles de Gaulle and Orly airports will now be running as normal.
CGT-RATP union members announced a seven-month strike notice from 5 February to 9 September that could hit the Ile-de-France bus and metro network – including during this summer’s Olympic Games.
However, the French Senate adopted a bill on 9 April to allow the state to ban transport strikes for set periods each year to avoid disruption during major events like Paris 2024. It also calls for more advance warning of strikes and increased minimum service obligations.
The bill faces opposition and must be adopted by the French National Assembly before it becomes law.
Workers at the state-owned public transport company say they are walking out over pay.
A public transport strike has been announced in the Netherlands’ biggest cities on 12 September, with more walk outs possible.
It comes ahead of the Cabinet’s budget proposal, which workers hope will include plans to allow those in physically demanding jobs to retire earlier.
Services in Amsterdam, The Hague and Rotterdam will be impacted.
If you know of a big strike happening in your country that we have missed, we’d love to hear from you via Twitter.