The unions CCOO and UGT have agreed to call a 24-hour general strike for this autumn, the first since 2012. The protest demands decent wages and affordable housing and must take place before November 13 to avoid coinciding with the election campaign.
CCOO and UGT have agreed to call a 24-hour general strike this autumn, the first in Spain since 2012. The announcement, made on Monday in a joint statement, as reported by Infobae, demands wages that allow access to decent housing and comes just hours after the Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, announced the calling of general elections for November 29.
The call still needs to be ratified by the highest governing bodies of both unions and does not have a definitive date. The strike day will be organised alongside the Tenants' Union and other social organisations, and will be linked to the right to housing, wages, and rental prices. The General Secretary of UGT, Pepe Álvarez, has ruled out the strike coinciding with the election campaign, meaning it must take place before November 13.
The immediate origin of the protest is the rejection by the Congress of Deputies last week of the two royal decree-laws on housing proposed after mobilisations across the country.
Article 28.2 of the Constitution recognises the right to strike "for the defence of their interests", but as the organic law that develops it has not been approved, the current regulation remains the Royal Decree-law 17/1977, which predates the Constitution itself.
This regulation guarantees several protections. Participation is voluntary, and the company cannot exert pressure in any direction. During the strike day, the contract is suspended, not terminated: the worker does not receive pay for the hours not worked but retains their position and seniority. The legislation prohibits dismissal or any disciplinary sanction for participating in a legal strike, as well as replacing strikers with other hired workers once the conflict has begun.
The government authority can establish minimum services in sectors such as health, transport, or security, as long as they are proportionate and do not empty the right of its content. Workers assigned to those services are obliged to report to their posts.
Article 11 of the Royal Decree-law 17/1977 declares strikes for reasons unrelated to professional interest illegal, but the Constitutional Court, in ruling STC 11/1981, upheld the prohibition of purely political strikes and admitted the so-called mixed strike, which combines political and labour demands. Under this criterion, protesting against a government decision that affects workers' conditions is not considered a political strike.
On the reivindicative front, the unions propose for the VI Agreement for Employment and Collective Negotiation (AENC) salary increases of between 4% and 7% with review clauses. Additionally, the "Decalogue for the right to housing" demands a social pact, the limitation of rental prices, the creation of a public stock of protected and permanent housing, and the effective application of the Law for the Right to Housing in all territories.
The definitive date of the strike will be known when the governing bodies of CCOO and UGT ratify the call. To avoid coinciding with the election campaign, the protest must take place before November 13.
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