Time For Groundforce To Go?

Tobi Hughes·
Madeira News

Thousands of airline passengers have been left in limbo as the first few hours of a strike by Groundforce baggage-handlers saw the cancellation of over 180 flights.

Indeed, the number of flights being cancelled “is growing by the minute”.

ANA airports authority and TAP have both appealed to Groundforce to call off this industrial action. If it continues, it won’t just impact on passengers, but on workers of Groundforce and TAP – two companies already in serious difficulties, said TAP’s CEO Christine Ourmières-Widener.

She stressed the implications of this strike could further damage the ‘economy of this country’

Taken from Portugal Resident.

I can only speak for our family members coming. They are now stuck in Lisbon until Tuesday Morning, they flew from France via lisbon. The airport has been rammed pack with no social distancing, and on top of that no one can have there luggage which is on the planes until Monday morning.

Plus their PCR tests will have run out of date and they will need knew ones to travel, with probably extra cost and trying to find out where to get one.

Just totally unacceptable, and I hope the portugues and at least the Madeiran government, get rid of this company, and go in house or something else, they need no sympathy or support what so ever.

Imagine those with all their medication in their cases, who now have no access to it., how can this be….???

I think there will be many more issues rising from this and I pray we see the end of Groundforce.

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Tobi Hughes

10 Responses

  1. Just what you need in the present circumstances! Unbelievable. Sadly it seems it is not safe to travel at all without a lot of aggro, waiting around and expense. I am so very sorry for all involved and hoping that I will be able to confirm my booking to Madeira in December. Life really gets more and more difficult by the day. Feel so sorry for all involved.

  2. Definitely sound like an awful company – staff wages paid late three times already this year and 70% not getting holiday pay they’re owed. Certainly not the fault of the employees who are on strike, awful for all the passengers effected though.

  3. I can see that tempers are running high, but perhaps an even more balanced article might mention why the workers are strking and what their demands are. Normally, workers only use strikes as a very last resort, so they must be desperate.

  4. The reason for the strike is that staff are not being paid on time or receiving all the salary they are entitled to. Why are they not being paid, well guess what TAP who are a major shareholder in Groundforce have themselves not paid their bills from Groundforce. What do you think that people should do if meetings with management result in broken promises to pay the back pay and are simply met with threats to the workforce that jobs may have to be “rationalised” due to cash flow problems. And who is the largest debter to Groundforce? TAP a company who take over 12 months to process refunds for flights they cancelled! The fact TAP has been granted hundreds of millions of euros in state help seems to be of no incentive to TAP to pay its creditors be they companies like Groundforce or fare paying passengers like myself who are owed hundreds or even thousands of euros in refunds. Don’t criticise the workforce of Groundforce better to aim your criticism at the real party responsible for the current situation

  5. TAP was bankrupt well before the pandemic, the EU cobbled together a deal with Portugal so it could inject money in by allowing government to take 75% share holding and get round state aid regulations but it doesn’t help when Portugal is not solvent.
    The port in Lisbon is going through exactly same situation and is again bankrupt and well before pandemic.
    Things will just get worse long before better I’m afraid .

  6. I wonder how many of us would work if we were then to be mucked around with our wages when we had bills to pay. The situation is really unfair for the ground force staff and they have no other alternative than to raise the stakes and strike. Yes it causes many issues for travelers and thats not good either but at least they have money! This needs the Government to step in and sort it out before its causes more issues with employment here on the Islands!

  7. Mike, the government did step in, its technically them that own TAP, split Groundforce out of TAP and job done. The money Groundforce generates is being used across the full TAP exposure.

    1. Yes true, and how much has this cost TAP put people in hotels and feeding them, our Nephew will only arrive 1am Wednesday now, so four nights in hotel, and being given 140.00 euros per couple per day.

  8. Tobi your nephew is hopefully getting looked after our son and extended family were due to join us at christmas and new year but due to covid couldn’t
    They were then due to fly TAP to Lisbon and TAP onwards to East Germany, a one off journey. TAP gave them no alternative other than a voucher, that expires next month, they can’t get their money refunded, takes hours of waiting to get through on phone, then they have phone cut off by TAP once picked up, credit card won’t help as they accepted voucher,which was only choice given.
    Its a bust flush and will fold and sooner the better.

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