Millions of Spanish workers launch general strike over housing crisis

MADRID, 11 nov (OPA) — The main labor unions, UGT and CCOO, reported participation rates reaching 90% in the automotive and port sectors, 85% in the meat industry, 82% in waste collection, and 75% in the energy sector. The demonstrations erupted following the nationally televised eviction and subsequent death of an 87-year-old woman in Madrid last month, a crisis compounded by average rents nearly doubling over the past decade. Activists are demanding the elimination of tourist apartments, measures against real estate speculation, automatic lease renewals, and increased state intervention.

Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez called a snap election for Oct. 5 after right-wing parties in Parliament rejected emergency government decrees designed to limit evictions. Opposition parties, including the conservative Popular Party and Vox, criticized the walkout as a politically motivated maneuver. On Thursday, the government will attempt to have an interim Parliament ratify the contested housing decrees ahead of the upcoming election.