Malaga union warns it will take 'legal action' if Plaza Mayor shops start opening until midnight

The provincial branch of the CC OO union in Malaga has expressed its "total rejection" of the 'Late Night Shopping' initiative of the management of the Plaza Mayor and McArthurGlen shopping centres, which proposes keeping the shops open until midnight on 30 July and 27 August.

The union stated that it had formally contacted both the shopping centre's management and the human resources departments of the companies located within the centre to demand that they do not join this initiative.

The CC OO union specifically contacted Zara, Mango and Álvaro Moreno, warning them that, if they participate in the late-night openings, it would initiate "all appropriate legal actions, including complaints to the labour inspectorate and the necessary protest measures to safeguard the rights of the workers at Plaza Mayor and McArthurGlen".

Leire Atienza from the CC OO said that this "idea" is "the last straw in a systemic model of precarity in an overcrowded city like Malaga, which is suffocating in mass tourism".

"Trying to push the envelope further and turn retail into a nightlife alternative directly and brutally undermines the work-life balance of employees, subordinating their lives to the economic profit of big brands," she stated.

"Forcing staff to work until midnight in the middle of the peak summer season in the tourist area and during the sales period is crossing every line," head of commerce at the CC OO Ayose Curbelo said.

The union stated that the late-night initiative would not create more jobs; "on the contrary, the only thing that will exponentially increase is the workload, exploitation and extreme fatigue of the employees already on staff".

For the CC OO, retail already operates with extremely long opening hours of 12 hours a day. The union highlighted the "complete loss of work-life balance for employees" and the increase "in workload and physical and mental fatigue, especially exacerbated by the high summer temperatures and the extra effort already required during the ZGAT (Zona de Gran Turismo) and sales periods".

Working late implies the challenge of returning home in the early hours of the morning, "given the lack of an efficient public transport at those times".

The union also criticised the fact that this initiative is being "imposed unilaterally, omitting any prior consultation or collective bargaining with the legal representatives of the workers".

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