New Metrovalencia and TRAM Alicante Strikes Announced for June, Some on Sant Joan Night

The Spanish railway drivers' union Semaf has announced new strikes in June on the Metrovalencia and TRAM Alicante networks. Some of them will coincide with the large-scale strike by the Independent Railway Union (SIF), which will last until the beginning of October. The first day on which the two protests will overlap will be Tuesday 23 June, when the festival of Sant Joan is celebrated.

The government of the Valencian Community is calling for calm, assuring that a minimum level of service will guarantee both the right to strike and mobility on the Night of Sant Joan. According to the department, during the most recent strikes between 75% and 80% of scheduled services were maintained.

Semaf has announced a fourth cycle of strikes from 19 to 30 June on the FGV networks — as a continuation of the protests begun in March. On Metrovalencia, the strikes will take place on 19, 23, 25, and 30 June during the following time periods: from 7:00 AM to 10:00 AM, from 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM, and from 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM.

On TRAM Alicante, strikes are scheduled from 19 to 23 June (from midnight to 1:00 AM, from 12:00 PM to 4:00 PM, from 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM, and from 11:00 PM to 11:59 PM), on 24 June (from midnight to 1:00 AM, from 12:00 PM to 4:00 PM, and from 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM), and on 25 June (from midnight to 1:00 AM).

Semaf is seeking the inclusion of proposals on ensuring safety and on professional development in the negotiations for a new collective agreement. The union accuses the FGV management of ignoring problems such as the regulation of drivers' working hours, and of including in the agreement clauses that, in the union's view, make drivers' pay even more unfair.