Spain Sees Largest General Strike in 14 Years as Housing Crisis Fuels Unrest

On Nov. 11, an estimated 4 million workers across Spain joined a nationwide general strike to protest soaring housing costs and lack of affordability. The strike is the country’s largest coordinated labor action in 14 years. The 24-hour walkout, which represents roughly one-fifth of Spain’s workforce according to union estimates, disrupted factories, businesses, ports, and public transportation.

Demonstrations were largely peaceful throughout the day before clashes between protesters and riot police erupted in Madrid and Barcelona. The strike comes less than three weeks before Spain’s Nov. 29 snap general election, placing the country’s deepening housing crisis at the center of an increasingly contentious political campaign that could determine the future of millions of workers.

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Protests turn violent, dozens arrested

According to Reuters, tensions reached a boiling point on Wednesday evening after thousands of demonstrators marched through major cities despite severe weather. In Barcelona, protesters clashed with police, while footage showed street furniture set ablaze following the main demonstration.

Meanwhile, in central Madrid, riot police deployed foam bullets, tear gas, and pepper spray to disperse crowds near Plaza de España. By 9 p.m. GMT, authorities reported at least 73 arrests nationwide and more than 1,000 strike-related incidents, including looting activity that saw blocked industrial facilities and trash containers set ablaze.

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Labor unions accused police of using “disproportionate” force, claiming that tear gas and baton strikes injured 20 demonstrators. Union representatives said they intended to pursue criminal complaints.

The walkout was backed by Spain’s two largest labor organizations, the General Union of Workers (UGT) and Workers’ Commissions (CCOO), alongside tenants’ associations demanding stronger protections against rising rents and evictions. It marked Spain’s first nationwide general strike since 2012, when workers protested austerity measures during the eurozone debt crisis.

Factories shutter as costs outpace wages

The strike brought widespread disruptions to Spain’s industrial sector. UGT and CCOO reported participation rates of approximately 90 percent at ports and automotive plants, with Volkswagen’s factory in Navarre and SEAT’s Barcelona facility experiencing complete work stoppages.

Major retailers, including Primark, H&M, and Pull&Bear, closed stores along Madrid’s Gran Vía shopping district, while businesses in Barcelona boarded up storefronts. Spain’s electricity grid operator, Red Eléctrica, recorded a 15.5 percent drop in electricity demand during one morning hour. Public transportation was also affected, with Madrid Metro reporting a 42 percent decline in peak-hour ridership.

At the heart of the unrest is a severe housing shortage that has pushed homeownership and rental costs increasingly beyond ordinary workers’ reach. Spain’s central bank estimates a deficit of approximately 750,000 homes, potentially exceeding one million by 2028.

According to the Youth Council of Spain, average monthly rent stands at €1,176 ($1,315), equivalent to 98.7 percent of a young worker’s average monthly salary. “I’m already 36 years old, and I still can’t afford to move out and live independently,” said Jesus Gonzalez, a Madrid hospital IT worker who supported the strike. “Rents keep rising, home prices keep rising. It’s simply impossible.”

Housing crisis at the heart

Housing activists have also targeted short-term rentals, which they blame for worsening housing shortages. Before Wednesday’s strike, a tenants’ union in Granada vandalized approximately 300 lockboxes used by tourist rental properties. The organization posted photographs of the damaged lockboxes on social media, declaring: “No to capitalists, no to rent-seekers, and no to their accomplices.”

Meanwhile, Angela de Miguel, vice president of Spain’s leading business association, CEOE, argued that the strike was counterproductive. She said housing shortages also hurt small businesses by making recruitment more difficult, advocating additional construction and lower property-related taxes.

The Nov. 11 nationwide walkout followed weeks of demonstrations sparked by the eviction and death of an 87-year-old woman in Madrid. Public anger reached a boiling point after Spain’s parliament rejected government measures intended to curb evictions and ease rental pressures, prompting Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez to call an early election for Nov. 29.