So yesterday, September 29th was the Huelga General, Spain's first national strike in 8 years! The stirke occurred also throughout Europe, but was most noted in Spain, because that is where I am of course, and because Spain is currently suffering one of the deepest and longest recessions in Europe. Currently, Spain's unemployment rate is at 20% (double that of the European Union and America)
The Stirke was called back in June, but labor unions agreed to wait until all the Fulbrighters arrived and had to get to work, and so that the Strike could be put into effect across Europe.
So who exactly was on strike?
Just about everyone. Busses, taxi's, trains, the metro, planes, teachers, the post office, small business owners, industries like car production (ford) cement, marble, and construction (although, that may have been a plus) These strikers gathered in masses in the cities to picket and show their disapproval of the intended budget cuts and the governments new ability to easily fire employees.
Today when speaking with one of the teachers in my school who attended the pickets. She told me that the police were out in full force, and were very uptight. She says her friends who were just walking in the street had gotten beaten by some police officers, and that the police were not afraid to use force against the strikers.
According to the newspapers, between 25,000 and 30,000 people showed up to picket yesterday in Valencia City alone! Strikes were larger and more dramatic in cities like Madrid where there were lots of riots and violence. Furthermore, a total of approximately 75% of government employees went on strike.
This then lead to everything being closed, including some schools! If there were not enough teachers, schools would just act as babysitters to the students, or close completely.
In my school alone, many students did not show up to school. I barely showed up to school!
Thankfully, public transportation was not completely halted. Labor unions agreed to run the MINIMUM amount of public transportation. For me and my need to take the metro, this means one train per hour on each line.
Here is how my morning went:
8:00 arrive at the metro stop, realized I forgot my phone
8:30 board metro
8:40 Transfer
8:43 realized it will be 45 minutes until the next train
9:00 school starts
9:30ish Train arrives a few minutes late
9:40ish, realized i got on the WRONG TRAIN
9:42, jump off the train and get on the other side of the track to wait to return to get on the right train
10:00 eat breakfast
10:20 Train arrives
10:25 Get off at a stop to get on the correct train
10:56 Correct train arrives
11:15 arrive at Moncada/Alfara where my school is
11:25 Arrive at school, 2.5 hours late
Thankfully after school I had a delicious lunch with my school's English teacher and her two daughters, and the oldest daughter drove me home after so I would not have to dare deal with public transportation again, and I successfully avoided it the rest of the evening
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