Barcelona airport heaped with rubbish after cleaners go on strike

A passenger pulling two pieces of luggage in a hall of Barcelona-El prat aiport, littered with pieces of paper and rubbish during a strike of the airport cleaning staff in El Prat de Llobregat on Dec 2, 2016. PHOTO: AFP
A passenger pushing a trolley in a hall of Barcelona-El prat aiport, littered with pieces of paper and rubbish during a strike of the airport cleaning staff in El Prat de Llobregat on Dec 2, 2016. PHOTO: AFP
A passenger puts an object in a rubbish bin surrounded by pieces of paper and rubbish in a hall of Barcelona-El prat aiport, during a strike of the airport cleaning staff in El Prat de Llobregat on Dec 2, 2016. PHOTO: AFP
A passenger checking his bag in a hall of Barcelona-El prat aiport, littered with pieces of paper and rubbish during a strike of the airport cleaning staff in El Prat de Llobregat on Dec 2, 2016. PHOTO: AFP
A passenger pushing a trolley in a hall of Barcelona-El prat aiport, littered with pieces of paper and rubbish during a strike of the airport cleaning staff in El Prat de Llobregaton Dec 2, 2016. PHOTO: AFP

BARCELONA - It took just five days for bins to overflow and floors to become strewn with rubbish after cleaners at Barcelona's El Prat Airport went on strike.

From Nov 28 to Dec 2, travellers were greeted by the sight of empty bottles, fast food packets and other trash as the union workers refused to clean up after them.

Passengers have shared images of the filthy airport on social media.

Every morning, the workers also scattered pieces of newspaper as they protested, reports said.

They are protesting a change in work schedules and cut in leave days after the airport awarded a low-priced contract to operator company Valoriza.

Rubbish piles around dust bins as passengers sit on benches in a waiting area at Barcelona's El Prat airport due to the strike of Valoriza, on Dec 1, 2016. PHOTO: EPA

The strike has since ended, but the workers threatened to resume the strike on Dec 22 and 23 if there is no progress in negotiations.

El Prat handled 39.7 million passengers in 2015.

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