The external gardens and greenery of the southern and northern airports of Tenerife, along with those on the islands of Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria and César Manrique in Lanzarote, have fallen into a significant state of neglect over recent weeks. Dried palm fronds are accumulating in the walkways, while the plants are wilting due to insufficient watering, and the wind tosses and rearranges the leaves of the trees, which poses a potential danger for visitors.
Aena, a state-owned entity responsible for airport services, opted to terminate its contract with the maintenance provider, Hispanic AEMA, last January due to “repeated breaches,” leaving the gardeners in a precarious position. This decision has resulted in the decline of garden upkeep across five of the eight airports within the archipelago.
Felipe Manuel Cabello Rojas, who has been employed at the South Tenerife airport for over 32 years and serves as a union representative for workers’ commissions (CC.OO.), has voiced criticism over the airport company’s lack of action and the potential negative impact this neglect might have on the Canary Islands’ tourism image. “It is unacceptable for the exteriors to be in this condition. This is the gateway for tourists, and we must take care of these spaces,” he stated.
“As soon as possible”
In comments made to a newspaper, AENA acknowledged that the contract termination “was driven not only by the non-payment to the workers (which the subcontracted firm had been delinquent on since October) but also due to several other breaches,” although they did not specify the nature of these contractual infractions.
They also confirmed that they are actively working on the tender process to assign the new service “as soon as possible.”
According to the State Gardening Agreement, “when a company ceases to provide a service and another takes over management, the new entity must employ workers who previously carried out those roles, provided they satisfy certain criteria. To qualify, employees must have a specific tenure working in the service, be directly assigned to that role, and possess all the necessary documentation that affirms their employment status.”
In this context, the workforce indicated, during a protest in October, that “Aena is attempting to cut costs by excluding longer-serving employees.”
Furthermore, the union leader alleged that the public state company is “deliberately prolonging this process to preclude the subrogation of more senior employees,” in a purported effort to create a new workforce with reduced salaries. He pointed out that “up to four of the workers have more than 30 years of service, with two others exceeding 20 years.”
Demonstration and ERTE
He added that they endeavoured to highlight this situation through a demonstration. According to him, the Government delegation needed to respond to their request, which led to a unilateral protest by the entire workforce on October 23 at the South Aerodrome, where they were removed for lacking the necessary permits. Following this, the workers were informed by the appointed company that they would be included in a temporary employment regulation (ERTE) file.
Yet, they contend that this option is unfeasible because “the company did not fulfil all the conditions required to implement an ERTE properly.” The gardeners, who are still awaiting clarity regarding their future employment, are preparing a protest demonstration.
