Spanish and Portuguese trade unions discuss combined general strike

Spanish and Portuguese trade unions are in contact to discuss organising a joint Iberian general strike, Euronews, Yahoo Finance Singapore, and Yahoo reported on Thursday. Several Spanish trade unions have already called for a general strike on 11 November. Unai Sordo, secretary general of the Spanish union Comisiones Obreras, stated that extending the strike action to Portugal is currently being considered. [1][2][3]

The discussions were revealed by Mr Sordo during an interview with the Spanish broadcaster RTVE and the EFE news agency, Euronews reported. Portuguese trade unions are evaluating whether to align with the same date for their action. Spain's two main trade unions are among those already committed to the stoppage on 11 November. [1]

Public discontent in Spain has risen recently following housing protests that began after a high profile eviction in September 2026. The Iberian peninsula also experienced a major power blackout in April 2025 that caused widespread operational and service disruptions across both Portugal and Spain. [4][5]

Labor disruptions have affected other European countries recently. As FTMQ News reported earlier, the Irish government invited unions to emergency talks in October 2026 to avert a planned public sector strike involving healthcare and education workers. [6]