The hotel industry workers' strike across the Canary Islands has taken a divergent path this weekend, with the walkout officially suspended in the islands of Gran Canaria, Lanzarote and Fuerteventura, but still going ahead in Tenerife.
Manuel Fitas, spokesperson for the Federación Sindical Canaria (FSC), declared on Saturday that the agreement reached with employers in Las Palmas was "absolutely insufficient." As a result, the strike will continue as planned on the island of Tenerife.
The suspension in the other islands came after the employers’ association FETH reached a deal with national unions CCOO and UGT. The agreement includes a one-off €650 bonus to be paid next month to offset the loss of purchasing power, alongside a 9% salary increase spread over the next 12 months.
However, Fitas criticised the terms and the negotiation process itself, which he says was conducted without input from the official strike committee. "Recovering just 2.75% of lost purchasing power and locking in a 4% wage increase without knowing how the economy will evolve for the remainder of 2025 falls short of our objectives," he said.
The situation in Tenerife is particularly sensitive, he added, given that hospitality workers saw their wages frozen throughout 2020 and 2021, during the height of the pandemic. This historical context, he argues, makes the proposed recovery measures inadequate.
As of now, the strike action will proceed in Tenerife unless a satisfactory proposal emerges from the meeting scheduled for today, Monday, between unions and employers in the province. Any new offer will be presented to workers during a general assembly set to take place on Tuesday in Adeje.
The outcome of that meeting could determine whether the industrial action is extended or resolved in the coming days.
