Spain faces first general strike in over 14 years on 11 November, amid election campaign

The strike and what it demands

The unions UGT and Comisiones Obreras have called a 24-hour general strike across Spain for Wednesday, 11 November 2026, to demand solutions to the housing crisis, higher wages and better transport. Other organisations have registered the strike alongside them: CGT, CNT, the actors' union Unión de Actores y Actrices, CO.BAS, the Intersindical and the Confederación de Sindicatos de Inquilinas. The walkout covers every hour of the day, from 00:00 to 24:00. The organisers want public authorities to guarantee access to decent, adequate housing and want wages to rise so that workers recover their purchasing power. ABC describes it as the first general strike in more than 14 years, and it arrives weeks before the general election.

Government and the campaign

Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, who brought the general election forward to 29 November 2026, backs the walkout. La Razón notes it is the first general strike of his two legislatures. Sánchez has defended the strike as a right of workers and criticised Alberto Núñez Feijóo for questioning it.

“What is absurd is questioning workers' right to strike.”

Government spokesperson Elma Saiz asked for respect toward the unions and the right to strike at the press conference after the Council of Ministers. Government sources said no minister has any public event on the agenda for Wednesday, although most are expected to do office work. Sumar minister Bustinduy, asked whether he would strike, said he would do everything possible to make the strike a success.

Opposition criticism

Feijóo called the decision to call a strike absurd and said the walkout is aimed at his party. PP spokesman Miguel Tellado described it as a preventive strike against whoever leads the opposition and said the PP expects it to fail. Paco Núñez, PP leader in Castilla-La Mancha, sees no sense in the strike and calls it political, designed to interfere in the elections. Ramiro González, diputado general de Álava, will not join the strike, arguing that the top representative of an institution cannot switch off his phone for 24 hours. He urged opposition parties planning to strike to back the tax measures for 2027 instead. UGT's Afra Blanco rejected PP claims that unions had mobilised nothing on housing and wages in eight years, calling the criticism false.

Catalonia's minimum services

Catalan government spokesperson Sílvia Paneque said her government understands the demands behind the strike and asked that the day unfold in a climate of coexistence. Consellers have no public or work events scheduled, and no member of the government will join the afternoon demonstration. Minimum services will cover 25% of the service at peak hours on public transport and at CAPs (primary care centres), the same share set for the 2010 strike. Paneque said the Mossos d'Esquadra have the same instructions as for any other strike, to act with proportionality. Salvador Illa, the Generalitat president, has made housing a priority of his legislature.

What workers need to know

Nobody can be forced to strike, and workers who choose to can go to their jobs instead. Those designated for minimum services are obliged to work. Pay is docked in proportion to the hours not worked, applied to the base salary, supplements and the pro-rated share of extra payments. Workers who cannot reach their workplace because of pickets or halted transport should inform the employer promptly and collect evidence, such as photos, videos or notices of transport closures, so that the day is not deducted.