Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport, Spain’s busiest hub, will face the last of five four-hour walkouts by South Europe Ground Services (SEGS) on 7 January 2026, with stoppages scheduled from 18:00 to 22:00. SEGS, the IAG-owned handler that services Iberia, British Airways, Vueling, Aer Lingus and Level, is locked in a pay-and-roster dispute with two unions (USO and CGT) covering 3,300 ramp, baggage and check-in staff. Although the Ministry of Transport has imposed minimum-service levels of 77 % on Spain’s strategic “lifeline” routes to the islands and 56 % on long domestic sectors, previous strike days (23, 26 & 30 December and 2 January) still produced queues of up to 90 minutes at security and forced airlines to delay or cancel more than 180 flights.
The 7 January stoppage coincides with the end of the Christmas/New-Year travel window, when Aena expects the network to handle more than 4,500 departures. Corporate-travel managers are particularly concerned about missed connections: Madrid acts as the principal long-haul gateway for multinationals moving staff between Latin America, Africa and Europe. Iberia has activated a “no-penalty” re-booking window for tickets issued before 20 December, allowing passengers to shift travel to any date up to 15 January.
SEGS employees say chronic payroll errors, understaffing and unequal treatment of part-timers pushed them to act. Management counters that demands— including a €1,000 monthly pay rise and a 75 % overtime premium— are “legally impossible” under the sectoral agreement. Mediation broke down on 5 January, making another escalation possible later in the quarter. Observers note that EU rules transferring ground-handling licences in 2027 are heightening job-security fears and hardening bargaining positions.
![Madrid-Barajas braces for final ground-handling strike as holiday rush peaks]()
Separately, for travelers whose strike-prompted rerouting adds new transit points or destinations, VisaHQ can streamline any unexpected visa requirements. Its dedicated Spain portal (https://www.visahq.com/spain/) enables fast online applications, real-time tracking and expert support, helping corporate mobility teams avoid paperwork delays while operational uncertainty continues.
For mobility teams the immediate advice is clear: • Re-confirm all MAD itineraries for 7 January, especially evening departures. • Warn travellers that hand-baggage-only strategies can shorten airport dwell times. • Where feasible, reroute short-haul movements onto Spain’s high-speed rail network, which is unaffected. • Log strike-related disruptions in duty-of-care systems so that managers can evidence risk-mitigation steps.
While the walkout is limited in duration, it is a reminder of the fragility of Europe’s ground-handling model. Companies with frequent Madrid rotations should consider negotiated SLAs with alternative handlers, or build extra dwell time into future rotas until a collective agreement is reached.
The 7 January stoppage coincides with the end of the Christmas/New-Year travel window, when Aena expects the network to handle more than 4,500 departures. Corporate-travel managers are particularly concerned about missed connections: Madrid acts as the principal long-haul gateway for multinationals moving staff between Latin America, Africa and Europe. Iberia has activated a “no-penalty” re-booking window for tickets issued before 20 December, allowing passengers to shift travel to any date up to 15 January.
SEGS employees say chronic payroll errors, understaffing and unequal treatment of part-timers pushed them to act. Management counters that demands— including a €1,000 monthly pay rise and a 75 % overtime premium— are “legally impossible” under the sectoral agreement. Mediation broke down on 5 January, making another escalation possible later in the quarter. Observers note that EU rules transferring ground-handling licences in 2027 are heightening job-security fears and hardening bargaining positions.
Separately, for travelers whose strike-prompted rerouting adds new transit points or destinations, VisaHQ can streamline any unexpected visa requirements. Its dedicated Spain portal (https://www.visahq.com/spain/) enables fast online applications, real-time tracking and expert support, helping corporate mobility teams avoid paperwork delays while operational uncertainty continues.
For mobility teams the immediate advice is clear: • Re-confirm all MAD itineraries for 7 January, especially evening departures. • Warn travellers that hand-baggage-only strategies can shorten airport dwell times. • Where feasible, reroute short-haul movements onto Spain’s high-speed rail network, which is unaffected. • Log strike-related disruptions in duty-of-care systems so that managers can evidence risk-mitigation steps.
While the walkout is limited in duration, it is a reminder of the fragility of Europe’s ground-handling model. Companies with frequent Madrid rotations should consider negotiated SLAs with alternative handlers, or build extra dwell time into future rotas until a collective agreement is reached.
