General strikes in France and Spain

Submitted by Matthew on 7 October, 2010 - 9:52 Author: Ira Berkovic

Workers in France continued their struggle against the government’s pension reforms, with a general strike on 23 September and a wave of demonstrations on 2 October.

On both days, around three million workers took part, with more than 200 local demonstrations on 2 October. The next general strike is due to take place on 12 October but more plans will be announced by union leaderships as Solidarity goes to press.

Sarkozy’s government is trying to force workers to contribute more to their pension and retire later.

Union leaderships in France are pursuing a strategy that seems designed to wear the strike down — calling one-day demonstration strikes several weeks apart with no plan for continuing the action.

This is not a strategy that can fend off a determined rightwing government. But at the time of writing, it appears French union leaders may escalate the action by organising rolling 24-hour strikes in the transport sector if the government does not back down.

Meanwhile, more than 10 million workers participated in a one-day general strike in Spain, bringing large sections of the country’s economy to a virtual standstill. Estimates for participation vary, with some sources estimating that up to 70% of the workforce took part. In certain cities and sectors, participation reached 90% or higher.

Transport services were severely hit, with the majority of all inter-city train travel being cancelled. Police attacked picket lines in many places as well as clashing with demonstrators.

The strike was called in response to Spanish austerity measures imposed by the country’s “Blairite” government, including a 5% cut to civil service pay and new laws that make it easier for bosses to sack workers. These follow a €750 billion IMF loan in May.

The leaders of the UGT and CCOO, the two union federations, have been somewhat sluggish in their response to the cuts, only calling the strike after the measures had been introduced and then only for one day. However, the experience of the general strike will have demonstrated the enormous potential power of organised labour to disrupt the day-to-day functioning of society (and, implicitly, to reorganise it).

The strike was also a success for the opponents of insipid rock music, as U2 were forced to cancel a scheduled concert.

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