Euskaltel held a protest on 30 December against plans for lay-offs at the company. Unions reported that the operator plans to outsource its Systems unit, which will lead to around two-thirds of the unit's staff or 40 employees being laid off. The protest started at the headquarters of Kuxtabank, a shareholder in Euskaltel, which the unions say has refused to gurantee employment at the operator.

They maintain that the bank aims to break up the company and sell it.