Spanish workers stage massive general strike over soaring rents and prices

Spanish workers staged a nationwide general strike on Wednesday, flooding streets in Madrid, Barcelona and other major cities to demand higher wages, lower rents and broader price controls ahead of the November 29 general election. Unions said roughly 4 million people – about 8 percent of the population – took part, while police estimated 120,000 demonstrators in Madrid and more than 50,000 in Barcelona. The protests, largely peaceful until late evening, turned confrontational in Barcelona where riot police used pepper spray and tear gas and several arrests were made.

Demonstrators carried banners calling for action on salaries, housing and consumer prices, citing a decade of wage growth lagging behind rising costs. A teacher, Rebeca Castaño, said families were forced to cram four or five people into a single bedroom and urged the government to limit prices, increase social housing and ban tourist-only flats in city centres. A recent survey found 79.2 percent of voters believed vacation rentals were significantly driving up rents.

Housing affordability remains a flashpoint after the September eviction and subsequent death of 87-year-old pensioner Maricarmen Abascal, prompting government promises to curb rent hikes. National Statistics Institute data cited by Euronews show house prices rose 84.6 percent over the past decade, while average wages grew 27.9 percent. Protesters also called for better public services, with one Metro employee saying the demonstrations were about “housing, education, healthcare” as well as wages.

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, in office since 2018, is trailing in the latest polls to the conservative People’s Party and its leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo. A Sociometrica survey reported a net shift of 832,000 voters from the left to the right since its previous poll.