Barcelona Strike on Nov. 11 Brings March From Gràcia at 17.30
A 24-hour general strike over wages and housing runs Nov. 11, with a march leaving Jardinets de Gràcia at 17.30. Nine demands, one rival rally.
A general strike over pay and housing is under way in Catalonia on Nov. 11, and a unitary march in Barcelona will set off at 17.30 from the Jardinets de Gràcia, according to public broadcaster betevé. The protest is called for 24 hours.
The march is organized by the platform Ens Costa la Vida (roughly, “Life Costs Us”), the Sindicat de Llogateres (the tenants’ union) and the Taula Sindical de Catalunya (a Catalan trade union coalition). The two largest unions, CCOO and UGT, back the strike. They registered the call at the end of October and asked workers to join in demanding higher wages and public action in the housing market.
The nine demands in the strike manifesto
The organizers say in their manifesto that having a job no longer guarantees a dignified life and that a salary does not secure decent housing. They also call for quality public services, naming health care and education. They sum up their requests in nine points:
- Lower rents, by reforming the reference price index and linking it to wages.
- A ban on evicting vulnerable people who have no other place to live, plus open-ended rental contracts.
- Expropriation of homes owned by banks and so-called vulture funds, and a ban on speculative purchases.
- A public housing stock that is fully public, with no minimum income cap for access.
- Recognition of union rights on housing, including collective bargaining, union representation and the rent strike.
- A minimum wage (salari mínim interprofessional) of 1.600 euros, with minimum pensions set at the same level.
- A working week of 35 hours, to spread work around, fight unemployment and improve health, quality of life and work-family balance.
- Pay rises for workers whose purchasing power has fallen.
- Defense of all public services.
Preparation at the University of Barcelona
Since mid-October, Ens Costa la Vida, the Sindicat de Llogateres and the Taula Sindical have been based in the Edifici Històric of the Universitat de Barcelona. They turned it into what betevé calls the strike’s preparation center. The building hosts several scheduled activities and an information point.
A rival demonstration at 17
A second march has been called by the Sindicat d’Habitatge Socialista de Catalunya (a socialist housing union) and Solidaritat Obrera (a labor union). They want to keep their distance from the main protest. In their view CCOO and UGT are “sucursals del Govern espanyol”, branches of the Spanish government, and for that reason they do not want to give the front of the march to those unions’ leaders. Their gathering starts at 17 h in the plaça de Jacint Verdaguer, half an hour before the main march leaves Gràcia.
Why it matters for people in Barcelona
The strike combines two grievances that affect many residents: wages and the cost of housing. Renters in particular are among the groups the organizers name, with demands that range from a rent index tied to income to a halt on evictions of vulnerable households. Several of the proposals, such as expropriation of bank-owned homes, a 35-hour week and a 1.600 euro minimum wage, are political demands rather than steps an employer or landlord can take alone.
The call has two separate marches on the same afternoon, which means two different crowds heading into central Barcelona at nearly the same time. Anyone planning to be in the Gràcia area or around plaça de Jacint Verdaguer in the late afternoon should expect demonstrators at both points, with the first gathering at 17 h and the main march departing at 17.30.
The sources do not say how many people have joined the strike or which services are affected. Reports on turnout and any disruption will come after the day ends.
Source: betevé
