Bus services for most of the Barcelona metropolitan area will be changed again in the coming weeks. Staff from Marfina Bus, a Moventis group company that operates routes in L’Hospitalet, El Prat and other municipalities of Bai Llobregat, made the call. … A new round of strikes every day November 15th and 22nd and December 5th, 24th, 31st. During this period, buses will circulate at a minimum capacity of 33%.
Behind this new strike plan is a labor dispute that has been going on for a year and a half. The CCOO and UGT charge that workforce conditions have significantly deteriorated since Marfina won the position. Workdays of more than 9.5 hours, “immobilized” travel time, disciplinary action, and a constant stream of dismissals and sanctions, the union says, are causing internal tensions.
The call comes at a particularly sensitive time for the company. Barcelona’s Social Court recently ruled in favor of the three CCOO drivers and representatives, concluding that Marfina had violated their right to strike. The ruling added to failed mediation attempts and added pressure to management, which was already dealing with several unchartered fronts.
One of these fronts is the lawsuit filed by the CCOO in January 2025 against unilateral changes in working conditions introduced by the company under Article 41 of the Labor Code. Unions have questioned the amendments, which affect fundamental aspects such as holiday allocation.
AMB fines Marfina
Conflicts also extend to the organizational level. The Metropolitan Region of Barcelona has imposed three serious sanctions on Marfina for repeated non-compliance with the schedules of the two lines. Two of the fines amounted to: 85,000 euros The third highest amount reaches 325,000 euros. AMB says this is a “systematic violation” of its award-winning services.
This is joined by a complaint from CGT, which accuses the company of firing union representatives due to labor unrest, which resulted in 100 deaths and injuries. The union claims that the changes in the ruling not only worsened working conditions for workers, but also the quality of service customers received.
Lines affected by strikes
Marfina Bus, integrated with Moventis, will operate these public routes from 2024 after winning a bid worth $500. 145.3 million euros. As detailed by the company on its official channels, the routes affected by the outage are L16, L20, L21, LH1, LH2, M12, M14, PR1, PR2, PR5, and X30.
The affected municipalities include Barcelona, L’Hospitalet, El Prat, Cornella, Espurugus, Sant Feliu and Sant Justo. During the strike period, all daytime services in Barcelona and Bai Llobregat will operate at a minimum of 33% throughout the day.
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