A protest march in support of the Los Monteros Hotel employees in Marbella caused traffic diversions in the town for more than two hours yesterday.

Nearly 1,000 people, according to the police, took to the streets to demand a solution for the 180 Los Monteros employees who have not been paid for eight months and whose place of work has no water or electric supply, never mind guests.

Carrying a banner which read "Los Monteros. En lucha por nuestros puestos de trabajo. Soluciones ya." (Los Monteros. Fighting for our jobs. Solutions now.), the marchers, led by the company union representative José García Osorio, the local tourism councillor, José Luis Hernández, and other CCOO unionists and local politicians, set off from the Marbella arch but decided not to follow the official protest route. Instead they made their way along the main thoroughfare in Marbella which meant that police had to cut off and divert traffic.

Once in the Avenida del Mar, Rafael de la Fuente who was the manager of the five star establishment, read out the manifesto. The protestors are now asking for help from the authorities in reopening the hotel and De la Fuente described the situation as "alarming". He also said that the owners of the hotel, the Russian oil group, North West Oil, were "severely punishing" tourism in Marbella.

North West Oil paid off 73 Los Monteros employees in December last year and another 43 in February but they were reinstated later. In May the company paid off another 40 but they did not get their jobs back.