Passport Control workers at Palma Airport are on an idefinite strike. | Miquel A. Cañellas

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The CCOO union yesterday called on the Balearics employment ministry to intervene in the indefinite strike by passport control workers at Palma's Son Sant Joan Airport.

The union has asked the minister, Iago Negueruela, to go to the airport and has also requested a meeting with representatives of the Aena airports authority.

The union wants to explain the reasons for the industrial dispute to Aena, which has thus far declined a meeting on the grounds that the union and the workers should deal with the employment inspectorate if the company which employs the workers (Acciona) doesn't make any move.

The workers' representatives have denounced the "doubling and trebling" of National Police officers at passport control booths in order to minimise the strike's impact as well as Acciona management who have apparently been spending shifts informing workers about the consequences of strike action.

The strike isn't of course 100%, as there are minimum service levels and therefore workers doing shifts. The union further alleges that workers whose contracts end in August have not been paid the final settlements with this month's salaries.

There are also meetings with political parties' representatives.

The union met with Ciudadanos and Més yesterday outlining the various grievances that the workforce has with Acciona. These relate to pay and specifically to "unintelligible payslip" information and systematic deductions from monthly salary.

The workers' complaints extend to what has been described as "organisational chaos", non-compliance with health and safety regulations, lack of training and misleading contractual information.

The impact of the strike has not been great.