Housing protesters at Puerta del Sol, Madrid

Spain’s First General Strike in 14 Years: Workers Walk Out Over a Housing Crisis That Eats Almost a Whole Pay Cheque

November 11, 2026 Faizan Altaf

Millions of workers across Spain stopped work on Wednesday, 11 November 2026, in the country’s first general strike in 14 years. The walkout is not mainly about pay. It is about a home — or, more precisely, about the fact that for many young Spaniards, an ordinary rented flat now costs almost an entire month’s salary.

The strike was called jointly by Spain’s two biggest trade unions, the UGT and the CCOO, together with other labour groups and tenants’ associations. It is the first time the two unions have backed a general strike together since November 2012. Picket lines appeared outside ports, car factories, markets and offices from midnight, even as two storms swept across the country.

The timing is political as well as economic. Spain votes in a snap general election on 29 November, and the campaign officially opens on Friday, 13 November. Housing has become the central issue of that election — and Wednesday’s strike has turned it into the story of the day.

Why are workers striking?

The simple answer is that housing in Spain has become unaffordable for millions of people, and the unions say the government has failed to fix it.

The average rent in Spain is now €1,176 a month, about $1,315. According to Spain’s Youth Council, that is equal to about 98.7% of a young person’s average monthly salary. In plain terms, a young worker on an average wage would need almost everything they earn just to pay the rent — before food, transport, bills or anything else.

Rents have risen far faster than wages. Rents listed on the Idealista property portal have gone up 44% since 2021, while average wages have risen only 22% over the same period, according to María Jesús Fernández Sánchez, a senior economist at the Funcas think tank, speaking to BBC Mundo.

Spain also does not have enough homes. The country’s central bank, the Bank of Spain, says the country has a shortage of about 750,000 homes, and that the gap is set to grow to more than one million by 2028. When there are not enough homes, more people are forced to rent, and rents climb.

The unions say the strike has three main aims: to unblock collective bargaining talks that have stalled, to force action against housing speculation, and to push for measures on the rising cost of living. In their joint strike notice, filed on 7 October, UGT and CCOO called for steps to contain property speculation, expand public housing and protect tenants from eviction.

The unions are also asking for the minimum wage to rise by 7% in 2027, from €1,221 to about €1,306 a month, paid in 14 instalments — a proposal reported by El Confidencial that has not been agreed with the government or employers.

The eviction that started it all

The strike did not come out of nowhere. It follows weeks of protests and tent encampments in city squares across Spain, and those protests trace back to a single event: the eviction of an 87-year-old woman in Madrid.

María del Carmen Abascal, known as Maricarmen, was evicted from the home in Madrid’s Retiro neighbourhood where she had lived for decades. She later died in hospital. Her eviction and death shocked Spain and became a rallying point for the housing movement. Protesters set up camp in Madrid’s Puerta del Sol square and in other cities, demanding an end to evictions and action on rents.

The anger grew when Spain’s parliament rejected government decrees aimed at curbing evictions and limiting rent pressures last month. With his minority government unable to pass its housing measures, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez called a snap general election for 29 November.

That is why this strike is different from the general strikes of 1988, 2002 and 2010, which targeted the government of the day. As political consultant Eduardo Bayón told BBC Mundo, no earlier Spanish general strike had been called during a pre-campaign period. This one lands just two days before the election campaign officially begins, turning an industrial dispute into an electoral event.

How strong was the turnout?

It is still early to judge the full impact of the strike, but the unions reported strong participation in the morning, especially in industry and transport.

According to UGT and CCOO, early participation reached 90% at ports and in the car industry, with total stoppages reported at factories including Volkswagen’s plant in Navarre and SEAT’s plant in Barcelona. The unions put early turnout at 85% in the meat industry, 82% in waste collection and 75% in the energy sector. Participation was lower in healthcare and social services, at 38%, and in the postal service, at 35%.

Not every union joined in. El Confidencial reported that the USO and CSIF unions did not call their members out, so union unity was incomplete.

The weather added to the challenge. Two storms, named Charles and Bruna, brought strong winds, rough seas and heavy rain, and Spain’s weather agency, AEMET, issued alerts for 14 regions. Even so, picket lines formed and large protest marches were planned for the afternoon in cities across the country.

Tensions at Madrid’s wholesale market

There were some tense moments at the start of the strike. At Madrid’s Mercamadrid wholesale market, about 1,000 protesters gathered in the early hours. CCOO’s Madrid branch said on X that police fired pepper spray at pickets and arrested one of them, with 13 people needing medical attention.

A police spokesperson confirmed the arrest but not the use of pepper spray at that picket, although he said pepper spray was used to disperse a separate picket line in the Carabanchel district of Madrid.

The incident underlined how high feelings are running. For many protesters, this is not an abstract argument about economics. It is about people being forced out of their homes.

An election gamble for Sánchez

For Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, the strike is both an opportunity and a risk. His Socialist Party lags in opinion polls, and he hopes to harness voter anger over housing and shift the political debate away from a series of corruption cases involving his inner circle and a deadly train crash last month.

The government has largely blamed the right-wing opposition, which runs many regions and municipalities, for rising rents and a lack of new housing. But union leaders and many protesters have said they also hold the central government responsible for the housing crisis — and for Spain’s second fatal train crash this year.

On Tuesday, the day before the general strike, train drivers walked out to demand more investment in railway maintenance and safety, causing widespread travel disruption. Spain’s transport minister resigned last week after the Urda train crash, as the government approved €30 million in aid for victims.

The housing issue cuts across party lines in a way that makes it difficult for any politician to control. The government’s two housing bills were voted down by the People’s Party, Vox and the Catalan pro-independence party Junts, leaving Sánchez’s minority administration unable to continue — which is what made an early election almost inevitable, according to analysts.

What is Spain’s housing problem, in simple terms?

To understand the strike, it helps to understand how Spain got here.

After the financial crisis of 2008, housebuilding in Spain collapsed. For years, far fewer homes were built than the country needed. At the same time, tourism boomed, and many flats in cities like Madrid and Barcelona were turned into short-term holiday rentals, taking them out of the long-term market for residents.

Meanwhile, wages grew slowly. The result is a simple mismatch: too few homes, too many people looking for one, and prices rising much faster than pay.

The problem is worst for young people. Many Spaniards in their twenties and thirties still live with their parents because they cannot afford to move out. Those who do rent often spend more than half their income on housing — far above the level experts consider affordable.

The central bank’s warning that the housing shortage could pass one million homes by 2028 shows the problem is getting worse, not better. Building homes takes years, so even if construction speeds up now, the shortage will not disappear quickly.

What happens next?

The strike lasts 24 hours, from midnight to midnight on Wednesday. The afternoon marches in Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Seville and other cities will be the clearest test of how much public support the unions have mobilised.

Then, on Friday, the election campaign begins. Housing will dominate it. Sánchez and his Socialist Party will argue that they tried to act and were blocked by parliament. The opposition will argue that the government had years to fix the problem and failed. The unions, for their part, will be watching to see whether any party offers the measures they are demanding: curbs on speculation, more public housing and stronger protection for tenants.

The strike notice was registered with the Labour Ministry by eight unions, led by UGT and CCOO, according to public broadcaster RTVE. That breadth of support suggests the housing movement has grown beyond the unions into a wider social cause — one that began with an 87-year-old woman’s eviction and now reaches into the heart of a national election.

Whatever the election result on 29 November, the new government will face the same numbers: a shortage of 750,000 homes, rents eating almost a whole young person’s salary, and a public that has now shown it is willing to stop the country for a day to be heard.

FAQ

When was Spain’s last general strike?

The last general strike jointly backed by UGT and CCOO was on 14 November 2012, during the government of Mariano Rajoy, in protest against austerity policies and labour reform. Wednesday’s strike is the first in 14 years.

What is a general strike?

A general strike is a strike by workers across many different industries at the same time, usually to protest against a government policy or a national problem, rather than a dispute with a single employer.

How much is the average rent in Spain?

The average rental price is €1,176 a month, about $1,315. Spain’s Youth Council says that is equal to about 98.7% of a young person’s average monthly salary.

How big is Spain’s housing shortage?

Spain has a deficit of about 750,000 homes, according to the central bank, and the shortage is set to grow to more than one million by 2028.

When is Spain’s general election?

The snap general election is on Sunday, 29 November 2026. The official campaign runs from 13 to 27 November, and the new parliament convenes on 23 December.

Who are UGT and CCOO?

The UGT (General Union of Workers) and CCOO (Workers’ Commissions) are Spain’s two largest trade unions. Together they called this general strike, along with other labour organisations and tenants’ associations.

Conclusion

Spain’s general strike of 11 November 2026 is about more than a single day off work. It is the moment a slow-burning housing crisis — years of rising rents, stagnant wages and too few homes — turned into a national shutdown, two days before an election campaign begins.

The numbers explain the anger: rents up 44% since 2021, wages up only 22%, an average rent that swallows almost a young worker’s entire salary, and a shortage of 750,000 homes that is still growing. Behind those numbers is a human story that began with the eviction of an 87-year-old woman in Madrid and grew into tent camps in city squares and, now, a country-wide stoppage.

Whether the strike changes the election — or changes housing policy — will become clear in the coming weeks. But the unions have already made their point: for millions of Spaniards, the question is no longer whether they can afford a home, but whether they can afford to live at all.

Sources

This article is for general information and education only. It is not legal or financial advice.

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