The general secretary of Comisiones Obreras (CCOO), Unai Sordo, has urged the working class throughout the country to “demonstrate” in a “massive” way in the streets during the general strike called for this Wednesday, 11 November, highlighting his aim of turning the day into “a historic day” and delivering a special message to young people.
“Tomorrow is your day,” he proclaimed in an address aimed at “working youth” so that they come “out of the classrooms,” “from FP centers, universities and from workplaces” and manage to “fill up the street.” These statements he made this Tuesday during a meeting of information pickets held at Puerta del Sol in Madrid.
The trade union leader appealed to the “subordinate classes” to back the strike, warning that “housing” is “at stake,” as well as “wages,” “the roof,” “time,” “public services,” “health services,” “education services,” and “infrastructure,” while also calling for “security” and “certainty” for all workers.
In his address, he put the focus on housing, one of the central pillars of the call, which he defined as “the great socioeconomic fracture that Spain has,” and urged people to be “much more ambitious so that in the coming years working youth can access housing.”
Sordo defended the promotion of public housing in the coming years, cited “rent-seeking” as a “scourge,” and asked for a “flood of people” to put pressure on the autonomous communities to “take heed”: “Know that housing policy for the big speculation, for investment funds, or for the tourist uses of homes will not be able to be done again.”
Along these same lines, he demanded kicking out “with a boot” the vulture funds from Spain, before issuing a warning to the business patronage, which he reminded that once the strike is over they will continue “fighting for an improvement in wages.”
“A lot of collective agreements are being negotiated. There are also strikes, for example, in a sector like that of the meat processors that already has its third day of strike. We are going to keep fighting in health services, in education, in industry, in the automobile and in all sectors to improve wages,” he said, making it clear that mobilization will not end with the 11N day.