SPAIN: European heads of government, cabinet ministers, teams of officials and hundreds of journalists making their way to Seville for this weekend's European summit face serious problems, writes Jane Walker, in Madrid
Striking air traffic controllers caused a string of cancellations and long delays across Europe yesterday and Spain is bracing itself for a 24-hour general strike today which threatens to paralyse the country.
Although compulsory minimum services will operate in some sectors, the majority of public transport will come to a standstill.
Authorities in the Balearic Islands estimate that the stoppage could hit 60,000 tourists, many of them Irish, whose holidays are due to begin or end this week.
The workers are striking in protest at the Popular Party (PP) government's new labour law, which affects Spain's 2.4 million unemployed.
The country's two main trades union - the socialist General Workers' Union (UGT) and the former communist Workers' Commissions (CCOO) - put aside their traditional rivalry to fight the labour reforms.
Banks, shops, petrol stations, bars and restaurants will close their doors. Radio and television channels will broadcast only news bulletins and pre-recorded programmes. Hospitals and pharmacies will field skeleton staff, and many schools, which traditionally break up at the end of this week, have brought forward the summer holidays by 48 hours.
Under the new bill, older workers over 52 will be penalised by forfeiting certain subsidies if they accept jobs which could be taken by younger workers. Long- term unemployed will be refused benefits if they refuse job offers within a 30-km radius of their hometown - the only government concession has been to reduce the distance from 50 km.
Particularly badly hit are the hundreds of agricultural workers, mainly in Andalucia, who can only find occasional seasonal employment and rely on a monthly state income of €300 to supplement their wages.
The new law aims to end these payments and would cause considerable hardship in many areas.
About 350 unemployed agricultural labourers, mostly from Morocco, who have been staging a sit-in protest in Seville university for the past 10 days, have threatened to embark on a hunger strike this weekend.
They complain that the strawberry-picking contracts, traditionally given to Magrebi workers, have been given this year to eastern European immigrants.
Their supporters and thousands of other workers will march through the centre of Seville at noon today.
They are expected to be joined by the thousands of anti-globalisation and other protesters who have flocked into the Andalucian capital for the EU summit.
When the union leaders picked June 20th for the first general strike since 1994, their choice of date was no coincidence. It was strategically chosen to embarrass the government on the eve of a summit which was meant to bring a successful end to Spain's EU presidency.
They aim to create chaos and upset the carefully planned meeting, and all signs are that they will succeed.