As the demand for flights picks up once again following the worst of the COVID, European airports have been faced with weeks of chaos at the beginning of the summer vacation season, prompting airlines and handling companies that operate out of the El Prat airport in Barcelona (Spain, Catalonia) to begin to ask workers to relocate to places like Schiphol (the Netherlands) or Gatwick (United Kingdom).
These are “temporary” work offers that, according to the CCOO and UGT unions, only 10 to 40 people have accepted.
But now that demand is once again on the rise, they are experiencing labor shortages that have translated into canceled flights, lost suitcases, and long check-in lines.
In Catalonia, on the other hand, many airport workers were furloughed rather than laid off, meaning they were able to return to work when needed – in April alone, El Prat had 94.8% as many flights as before the pandemic.
Both the Barcelona and Madrid airports now have longer than usual passport control lines.
Spain has long been a popular tourist destination for Brits. But now, UK passport-holders must go through the much longer non-EU queues.
“Over the past few days, it is not uncommon for people to have had to wait in line for over three hours,” travel agency association ACAVE complained. This situation has forced the Spanish government to send another 500 passport control officers to airports.
See also France travel guide
See also Spain travel guide
