February half term holidays could be hit by strikes including France and Spain
Holidaymaking Brits could face chaos caused by rail, airport and ski resort strikes in February half term.
Workers across the Continent are walking out next month in the hopes of having their pay and condition demands met amid the spiralling cost of living.
The latest to be announced are being led by two French unions pushing for better pay for their workers in Alpine ski resorts.
The possibility of more strikes in other parts of France remains strong as protests against the planned lifting of the state pension age from 62 to 64 rumble on.
There is also a strong chance RMT and ASLEF rail disputes in the UK will remain unresolved and lead to the announcement of more strike days, while Border Force workers have announced four strikes days over half term.
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French ski resorts
The unions have called several strikes in January and February (Shutterstock / Romain Talon)February half terms on the slopes are likely to be severely disrupted by striking workers in France.
Two main unions covering lift and seasonal workers announced “unlimited” industrial action from January 31 as part of wider protests against pension reforms in France.
Walkouts are being targeted over the school half-term period which may close scores of ski stations, The Times reported.
Half-term in the UK is split over two weeks, from February 11-25, while the French equivalent runs for four weeks from February 4.
Eric Becker, head of the lift operators’ branch of the Force Ouvriere union, was quoted as saying: “We have decided to call for a strike during the February holidays because demands are listened to more during this period.”
The other main union, Confederation Generale du Travail, issued an open-ended notice of intention to strike from February 6 to 19.
Border Force
Around 1,000 Border Force officers in Dover, Calais, Coquelles and Dunkirk are to go on strike for four days during the February half term school holidays, on 17, 18, 19 and 20 February.
The workers are striking over pay, pensions, redundancy terms and job security.
PCS General Secretary Mark Serwotka said: “The strikes we have announced in the Border Force will impact on holiday travel during half term.
“For while the government brought untrained military personnel in to replace our highly-skilled and experienced officers in airports over Christmas, they won’t be able to do that in France.
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“The blame for these strikes lies firmly at the feet of ministers who are refusing to put any money on the table." x
The Home Office has warned passengers to be prepared for disruption, keep up with the latest advice from travel operators and check how the strike could affect them.
Spanish airports
The Spanish airports will be hit by strikes in the coming weeks (Getty Images)In Spain the USCA and CCOO unions have decided to call a strike of air traffic controllers in 16 Spanish airports where the control towers are privatised.
The airports affected are Ibiza, A Coruña, Alicante-Elche, Castellón, Cuatro Vientos, El Hierro, Fuerteventura, Jerez, Lanzarote, La Palma, Lleida, Murcia, Sabadell , Seville, Valencia and Vigo.
The strikes will take place on February 6, 13, 20 and 27.
The unions have said that "the system cannot function based on the efforts of a fatigued workforce and with constant cuts in rights consolidated in the past."
UK rail strikes
More rail strike dates in the UK could be called (PA)The dispute between the RMT Union and ASLEF is rumbling on, seven months after it started.
The most recent strike dates were on Wednesday 1 February 2023 and Friday 3 February 2023, with the following companies' services affected:
Avanti West Coast; Chiltern Railways; CrossCountry; East Midlands Railway; Gatwick Express; Great Northern; Heathrow Express; Island Line; London Northwestern Railway; Northern; Southeastern; Southern; Thameslink, TransPennine Express; West Midlands Railway.
There is a chance further strikes will be called later this month if a "best and final offer" made by the Rail Delivery Group is not accepted.
Pre half-term strikes
There are a number of other pieces of industrial action planned for the end of January and the start of February which are worth keeping an eye on, as they may roll over in the half term if the situation is not resolved.
France’s CGT union has also called for refinery workers and other staff in the petrol sector to strike for 48 hours on 26 January and 48 hours on 6 February, also over pension reforms.
Similar strikes in 2022 saw petrol stations run dry and drivers waiting hours to fill up their cars, so not ideal if you're planning a half term road trip.
If you are travelling via air during the strike days, check your flight status well in advance and expect disruption upon arrival in the UK.
Cabin crew at Portuguese national carrier TAP are set to walk out for seven days from January 25 to 31.
Union SNPVAC are demanding higher wages and better working conditions for its members.
The strike could affect hundreds of flights, including those to airports in Lisbon and Porto.
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