On March 14, the stoppage of the road transport sector in Spain began and after more than a week of strike, more and more professionals are signing up for this protest. Both large distribution companies and self-employed distributors denounce that the sharp increase in fuel prices prevents the business from being profitable and they demand quick and effective solutions from the Government to alleviate the situation. These are the main keys to the break.
Who is on strike and why?
The stoppage was initially called by the Platform for the Defense of the Road Freight Transport Sector, a minority organization led by , due to the rise in fuel prices. The cost per liter of gasoline and diesel has shot up to 25% since the beginning of the year due to fuel shortages caused by Russia’s war in Ukraine and fears of shortages in Europe.
After the first protests, the Government presented this Monday to help the sector, but the carriers branded it ambiguous and insufficient, which caused other employers integrated in the National Committee of Road Transport to join the strike.
What is the Government’s solution?
On Monday afternoon, the Minister of Transport, Raquel Sánchez, presented a battery of measures to discount the price of professional fuel valued at 500 million euros financed between the State and the oil companies. At the moment the details of the proposal, which is intended to be approved on March 29, are unknown, so it will not immediately help the sector.
The main measure of the plan would be , which according to industry calculations would be about 4 cents per liter, at a time when a liter of diesel amounts to 1.81 euros, on average.
Which companies have been affected?
Since this Monday there are already numerous companies of all sizes that denounce the impossibility of operating due to the carriers’ strike. From food companies such as Calvo, to the Heineken and Mahou San Miguel breweries, through industrial giants such as ArcelorMittal, they warn that they have difficulties receiving and shipping products, and in many cases they have had to stop production.
The food sector is the one that is currently suffering the most from the consequences of the protests, to the point that the sector is warning of a possible one due to the brake on distribution. In this sense, Danone has announced this Wednesday the stoppage of , one of them for water and another for dairy products. Another giant also warned this Tuesday that it is already beginning to experience shortages in its food products distributed by Amazon Fresh.
Is there a shortage due to the strike?
Social networks and the media have been filled in recent days with photos and videos of empty shelves in stores and supermarkets due to the lack of delivery trucks, which are stopped by the strike. Representatives of the commercial and food sector warned this Tuesday of “a serious risk of shortages” if the protests of the carriers continue.
The lack of products in establishments has also been fueled by a gathering of consumers in fear of a shortage of essential products, which has caused the ACES supermarket employers to call on households to consume responsibly. .
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