Spanish medical unions postpone indefinite strike following snap election call while Catalan doctors maintain walkout

National strike postponed over snap election

Spain's medical unions have suspended the indefinite nationwide strike that was scheduled to begin on 28 October 2026. The move follows the announcement by Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez calling a snap general election for 29 November 2026. The resulting dissolution of the Cortes Generales caused the draft reform of the Framework Statute, which was under review in the parliamentary health committee, to lapse. Union bodies, including the Spanish Confederation of Medical Unions (CESM), the Andalusian Medical Union (SMA), and the Medical Union of Euskadi (SME), stated that pursuing national stoppages without an active legislature or negotiating counterpart in Madrid would place a heavy burden on doctors without a viable legislative route. The strike committee declared that the ministry's draft bill is politically buried, calling the outcome an indisputable success for the profession while keeping the strike notice active.

The decision does not imply a waiver: the strike call remains in force and mobilization can be reactivated if the next Government does not address the group's demands.

Dispute over the Framework Statute

The lapsed legislation aimed to overhaul employment regulations for nearly 1,000,000 workers across the National Health System. The Council of Ministers approved the bill on 1 September 2026 after reaching agreements with mainstream union federations, including SATSE-FSES, FSS-CCOO, UGT, and CSIF. Specialized physician unions rejected the text, arguing that it perpetuated discriminatory working conditions despite incorporating specific changes, such as lowering mandatory on-call duty limits. On 6 October 2026, State Secretary for Health Javier Padilla expressed regret that the draft bill could not reach a final vote in the Congress of Deputies. Non-medical union federations maintained that the negotiated text must serve as the reference point for the incoming administration.

Catalonia breaks away to proceed with walkouts

In contrast to the national pause, the largest union in Catalonia, Metges de Catalunya, confirmed it will proceed with an indefinite strike starting 28 October 2026. The union's Executive Council met on 6 October 2026 to evaluate the electoral announcement and concluded that the regional dispute remains independent of national political cycles. Metges de Catalunya noted that healthcare management is fully devolved to autonomous communities and that the regional government in Barcelona is not serving in a caretaker capacity. The union has met with Catalan Health Minister Olga Pané at least once in the past three weeks to discuss working conditions. Regional organizers demand immediate solutions from the Catalan Health Department for severe workload pressures, excessive working hours, and doctor shortages in primary care and hospitals.

Electoral demands and union coordination

The national postponement was coordinated through the Unión Médica y Facultativa (UMYF), a confederation formed in June 2026 by seven regional medical unions, including AMYTS in Madrid, O'Mega and Simega in Galicia, Avanza Valencia, and unions in Navarre and the Canary Islands. Although national industrial action is frozen, UMYF announced plans to conduct targeted protest actions throughout the campaign period to insert physician working conditions into political party platforms. Union leaders called on all competing political parties to commit to a dedicated statute for medical personnel before the 29 November 2026 vote. The organizations warned that if the government emerging from the election fails to negotiate specific regulations, nationwide strike action will resume.