On November 11, Spain experienced a nationwide strike that led to the cancellation of hundreds of flights, disruptions in railway services, and the shutdown of some businesses and ports. The participants protested against the high cost of housing and demanded higher wages.

This was reported by the Spanish news agency EFE. The 24-hour action was organized by the country's leading trade unions CCOO and UGT together with civic associations defending the rights of housing tenants.

The most noticeable were disruptions in transportation. According to the state railway operator Renfe, the strike caused the cancellation of 24% of scheduled high-speed and intercity trains. In suburban and regional services, the share of cancelled trips was 10.2%.

Airlines were also forced to adjust their schedules. Preliminary data indicated that 263 flights were cancelled in Spain, about 5.8% of the flights planned for that day.

Serious disruptions occurred in seaports. The container terminals of Algeciras virtually stopped working, and strikers blocked access to the ports of Barcelona and Tarragona. Protests also affected logistics centers and automotive enterprises, some of which temporarily halted production.

Mass demonstrations took place in Madrid, Barcelona and other cities. Participants blocked roads and demanded measures to make housing rents cheaper and restore the purchasing power of wages. In some cities, clashes with the police occurred. About 50 arrests were reported at the end of the day.

Assessments of the scale of the strike by trade unions and employers differ significantly. CCOO and UGT called the action successful and claimed high participation of workers in industry, logistics and transport. In contrast, the largest employers' association CEOE asserts that less than 5% of workers joined the protest, and that most enterprises operated normally.

The strike was the first nationwide protest of this scale in the last 14 years. Its main cause was the housing crisis: the growth of rents and real estate prices increasingly exceeds the financial capabilities of some Spanish households.

Based on materials from: EFE, EFE - strike results