2026 Airport Handling Salary Review: What Changes and What Companies Must Do

Key data

Concessionaire and subcontracting handling companies at Spanish airports have an active salary obligation since 16 March 2026: to apply the new salary scales derived from the review set out in Article 26.3 of the V Convenio Colectivo General del sector de servicios de asistencia en tierra en aeropuertos. The Resolution of the Dirección General de Trabajo, published in the BOE on 26 March 2026 (reference BOE-A-2026-7015), registers and publishes the minutes of the joint committee activating this clause.

The handling sector typically operates with large workforces, which means any salary adjustment has a direct and significant impact on the total payroll mass. Every day of delay in updating payrolls generates accumulated salary differences owed to workers.

What does this regulation establish?

The joint committee of the V Convenio Colectivo del sector has agreed to activate the salary review and update clause under Article 26.3. This clause provides an adjustment mechanism for the collective agreement's salary scales based on the parameters agreed between the parties.

The practical result is the approval of new salary scales applicable to all workers covered by this collective agreement. The Dirección General de Trabajo has registered and published the corresponding minutes, giving them full legal effect and binding force for all companies in the sector.

Economic and operational impact

The activation of the salary review clause has a direct impact on the payroll mass of all companies in the sector. The new salary scales must be applied with effect from 16 March 2026, meaning that payrolls for that month and subsequent months must already reflect the new amounts.

The main vectors of economic impact are:

• Increase in direct labor costs: the adjustment of salary scales raises the cost per worker at all levels of the collective agreement.
• Social security contributions: the increase in the salary base carries a proportional increase in Social Security contributions borne by the company.
• Retroactive salary differences: if the company does not apply the new scales from 16 March, it accumulates salary differences claimable by each affected worker.
• Risk of labor sanctions: failure to comply with the collective agreement's salary scales may lead to sanctioning proceedings under the regulations on infringements and sanctions in the social order.

Given the typically large workforce in airport handling companies, the aggregate impact can be significant. The financial planning for the 2026 financial year must incorporate this adjustment if it had not already been factored into budgets.

Who is affected?

This regulation directly affects:

• Handling concessionaire companies operating at Spanish airports under the V Convenio Colectivo General del sector.
• Subcontracting companies providing ground assistance services at airports with workers covered by this collective agreement.
• HR and payroll departments of these companies, responsible for updating the applied salary scales.
• Finance directors and CFOs who must review the impact on the payroll mass and on labor cost projections for 2026.
• Handling sector workers in any professional category covered by the V Convenio, who are entitled to receive the new amounts from 16 March 2026.
• Labor advisors and management consultancies handling payroll for companies in the airport sector.

Practical example

A handling company operating at a Spanish airport with a workforce of 200 workers covered by the V Convenio Colectivo must, from 16 March 2026, apply the new salary scales to all of those workers.

If the company does not update the March 2026 payrolls with the new amounts, each worker accumulates a salary difference from that date. With 200 affected workers, even a small monthly difference per employee becomes a significant total salary debt, to which unpaid social security contributions on those differences and the risk of individual or collective claims must be added.

Additionally, if the Labor Inspectorate detects the non-compliance, the company faces sanctioning proceedings in the social order. Late regularization does not automatically eliminate liability for the period of non-compliance.

What should companies do now?

1. Obtain the new salary scales published in the joint committee minutes (BOE-A-2026-7015) and verify the updated amounts for each professional category of the V Convenio.
2. Update the payroll system with the new salary scales, with effect from 16 March 2026, so that March and subsequent payrolls reflect the correct amounts.
3. Calculate and pay the salary differences corresponding to the period between 16 March and the date of actual update, if the March payroll was already processed using the previous scales.
4. Review the impact on social security contributions resulting from the increase in the salary base and adjust the company's Social Security calculations accordingly.
5. Update labor cost projections for the remainder of the 2026 financial year, incorporating the new salary level into budgets and service contracts that include cost review clauses.
6. Inform HR managers and employee representatives about the application of the review, to avoid labor disputes arising from lack of information.

Official source

View full regulation at official source

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. For specific decisions, please consult a qualified professional. Source: https://www.boe.es/diario_boe/txt.php?id=BOE-A-2026-7015