Metal workers face their eighth day of strike in the Spanish province of Cádiz

Posted: 23 Nov 2021 10:37 GMT

The students have also been called to participate in a general strike in support of workers in the sector.

The indefinite strike maintained by more than 20,000 workers of the metal sector in the Spanish province of Cádiz reaches its eighth day on Tuesday after the third negotiating attempt called on Monday failed.

The Junta de Andalucía, the regional government, brought together the Federation of Metal Entrepreneurs (Femca) and the unions in Seville, but the negotiation has not been fruitful after the workers’ representatives rejected the employer’s proposal, which they describe from insufficient.

The origin of the labor dispute is centered on the renewal of the sectoral agreement, which expired in December 2020. Workers are demanding a salary increase of 2% for this year, 2.5% for 2022 and 3% in 2023, in addition to four hours less of work per year.

One of the most controversial episodes of the seven days of strike that have already taken place has been the image of a tank in the streets of Cádiz. It is a vehicle from the Armed Forces that has been reconditioned and is now used by the anti-riot forces, although on rare occasions.

The difference in treatment of the mobilizations, depending on whether they are from the left or the right, is a constant in IPU operations, but using military material against the workers in Cádiz is a qualitative leap. It is wrong inside allowing this https://t.co/4Onn7Vd8iA

– Pablo Iglesias 🔻 (@PabloIglesias) November 22, 2021

The deployment of this vehicle, called BMR, has caused great controversy as it is considered excessive to face a labor protest. Even the former vice president of the Government, Pablo Iglesias, has pronounced in a Twitter post: “The difference in treatment of the mobilizations, depending on whether they are from the left or the right, is a constant in IPU operations. [Unidades de Intervención Policial], but using military equipment against workers in Cádiz is a qualitative leap“.

For this day a big demonstration in the capital from the province at 11 in the morning. The protest coincides with a general strike by students from the third year of secondary education (15 years) called in support of the metal workers. Yesterday there were also several protest marches, such as the one that went through the streets of Algeciras or the concentration that took place in the center of Seville.