Spain’s first general strike in eight years, called to oppose spending cuts, disrupted transport and factories on Wednesday, a day before the government was due to take its tough budget to lawmakers.
The strike won more support from workers than a weak public sector walk-out in June, but impact was limited as most Spaniards appear to resign themselves to austerity to trim a massive deficit.
“The country is in a mess, and everyone’s personal finances too, so I think a strike just makes things worse,” said 35-year-old shop assistant Arancha Fernandez de Cordoba, who went to work.
Wednesday’s work stoppage — called by Spain’s two big unions the UGT and CCOO — coincided with labour action in Brussels, Athens and other European cities as austerity measures bite across the continent.
Socialist Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, due to start seeking Parliament’s approval for his 2011 budget plan on Thursday, has vowed not to go back on austerity and labour reforms that make it easier for companies to hire and fire.
Trade unions said 10-million people, or more than half the workforce, had walked out, but the government said less than 10% of public administration workers and 21% of Madrid transport workers were on strike.
Labour Minister Celestino Corbacho said strike action had been higher in car manufacturing and ports and lower in health and education.
“The strike has had an uneven following and a moderate impact,” he told journalists at a news conference.
Thousands of workers marched and waved flags in mostly peaceful protests around the country. Police detained a few pickets in Madrid for blocking roads, protesters set a patrol car on fire in Barcelona and miners burned tyres in Asturias.
“We’ll continue to strike if that’s what’s needed to bring down the labour reform, which threatens to make jobs even more vulnerable,” said graphic designer Alfredo Perez, a picket.
Demand for power was 16,5% lower than usual as assembly lines halted at factories, and tourists trapped by cancelled flights napped on inflatable mattresses in Mallorca.
Financial markets shrugged off the strike, which analysts said was unlikely to make the government reverse its plans to meet European Union deficit reduction targets.
“The Spanish protest doesn’t seem to be large enough to really change anyone’s view, either in the market or amongst the Spanish people,” said David Lea, Western Europe analyst at ControlRisks.
Many work
Zapatero cut civil servants’ wages by 5% as part of an austerity package after investors drove up Spanish borrowing costs earlier this year over fears the country could be heading for a Greek-style debt crisis.
Unions were also protesting Zapatero’s pledge to reform pensions and raise retirement age to 67 from 65.
Spain’s trade unions represent about 16% of workers, a low level compared with much of Europe. Non-union workers criticised the strike.
“The strike is a big act, it’s just a way for the union representatives to justify their salaries,” said beauty parlour worker Teresa (38) as she peeled strike posters off the door of her salon.
Many businesses remained open but many bus, subway and train services were cancelled.
The yield premium investors demand to hold Spanish 10-year bonds rather than benchmark German bunds rose to around 197 basis points, its widest since July, largely due to fears of possible rating downgrades in peripheral euro zone states.
The benchmark Ibex index of Spanish stocks closed down 0,98% at 103,9 points. – Reuters