Malaga metro workers go on strike during Holy Week peak days and times

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The regional government has decreed minimum services of 60 per cent during the hours of the partial strikes on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday

Ignacio Lillo

Malaga

Monday, 30 March 2026, 16:14

Malaga metro workers are maintaining their strike call, with partial stoppages planned for the days and times with the highest passenger demand during Holy Week: Monday, Wednesday and Thursday.

The metro has become one of the most popular modes of transport for people wanting to attend the processions. Residents of the wider Malaga area, who leave their cars at the Teatinos and Martín Carpena stations, are also regular passengers during the public holidays.

The dates and times of the planned actions are as follows: Holy Monday (30 March), from 5.30pm to 8.30pm, which coincides with the peak time for people attending the procession of the Cautivo; Wednesday (1 April), from 5pm to 8pm; and Holy Thursday (2 April), from 6pm to 9pm. On those same days, metro staff will hold demonstrations at the El Perchel station, near María Zambrano.

This decision comes after Monday's meeting ended without an agreement. "Far from showing willingness to find common ground and avoid conflict during Holy Week, the company focused on criticising the committee, even questioning how its proposal was presented to the assembly," sources from labour association Sercla reported.

Sercla spokespersons said that the information provided to staff regarding the proposed agreement has been "transparent" at all times and that the decision to reject the agreement was made by a majority vote. "Today, once again, the company has avoided addressing the key aspects of the agreement, especially regarding organisational matters, maintaining an attitude of complete obstruction," sources said.

Minimum services

"This leads us to a strike during Holy Week, with minimum services at 60 per cent, which will foreseeably create a disruptive situation for the public, with overcrowding and difficulties moving around. All of this is the direct responsibility of a company that has failed to meet expectations," the union representatives stated.

To justify the activation of minimum services, the regional government has stated that it essential to guarantee transport during Holy Week, when demand will exceed 100,000 daily passengers, with the metro acting as one of the main access routes to the official procession route.

The Atarazanas station on Alameda Principal is considered the only direct public transport access to the very heart of the procession route.

Furthermore, the regional government stipulates that trains in service at the start of the strikes must complete their journey to the nearest terminus and be parked as directed by the company to avoid disruptions. The concessionaire and the strike committee will be responsible for organising the staff who will cover these minimum services.

Labour negotiations

"The company representatives conditioned the progress of negotiations on the immediate cancellation of the strike, without even detailing a comprehensive proposal for improvement," the staff representatives said.

"Given the committee's refusal to call off the protests, the company put forward a series of measures deemed insufficient and regressive." Among the critical points in the negotiations, the committee cites the "inaction" on issues such as continuous driving, time-off compensation for night shifts and improvements to retirement benefits.

Despite the disagreement, the committee leaders reiterate their ongoing willingness to negotiate, but warn that the workforce is ready to increase pressure if there is no significant progress in the coming days.