Around a hundred employees of the Sóller Railway demonstrated this Saturday in front of the station to denounce the lack of safety and demand protocols that ensure safe conditions.
About a hundred workers from the Sóller Railway gathered this Saturday in front of the Sóller station to denounce the lack of safety in railway operations. The protest, called by the Federation of Services to Citizenship of CCOO of the Balearic Islands at the request of the workers' assembly, consisted of a loud horn honking that lasted for an hour and a half. The employees displayed banners with slogans such as “Without safety, there is no dignified work” and “Safety is a right, not a privilege”.
Recent incidents and “breaking point”
The representative of the CCOO union, Miquel Àngel Valent, explained that the staff decided to mobilise after noticing that various incidents have occurred in recent weeks involving both trains and trams. According to Valent, a “breaking point” has been reached that makes it essential to reinforce safety in the operation of the trains and in the daily work of the employees.
“We have had several serious incidents that have not been addressed by management,” Valent denounced. “Safety cannot wait any longer.”
Specific demands: protocols and training
Among the main demands, the workers are calling for the implementation of work protocols in the workshops, the creation of a safety and health committee, the updating of the circulation regulations and the emergency plan, as well as more training for the staff. They also demand the certification of the trains and trams so that they can operate with all the required guarantees.
Valent emphasised that all these demands respond to “basic issues” for any railway operation. The demands have already been communicated to the management of the Sóller Railway, to the Labour Inspectorate, and to the Mobility department of the Balearic Government.
The committee warns of a “critical” situation
The works council maintains that the situation regarding railway safety and occupational health is “critical” and denounces the lack of responses from the company. FSC-CCOO has filed various complaints with the Labour Inspectorate, the General Directorate of Mobility, and the General Directorate of Emergencies to alert about the risk that, in their opinion, this situation poses for workers and users of the historic railway service.
The union has explicitly sought to dissociate this mobilization from the recent Supreme Court ruling that sided with a group of workers and had so far stalled the negotiation of the collective agreement. Valent insisted that the protest responds solely to safety-related issues.
For the residents of Sóller and the tourists who use this iconic train, the situation generates uncertainty. The service, which connects Palma with Sóller and is a key tourist attraction, could be affected if measures are not taken. Workers warn that, without improvements, passenger safety is also at stake.
So far, the management of the Sóller Railway has not made any statements. The workers hope that the protest will lead to urgent negotiations. A meeting with the Labour Inspectorate is scheduled for next week to address the complaints filed.