Thousands of workers took to the streets in Barcelona and Málaga on May 1, called by unions CCOO and UGT. The protests focused on demands for peace, housing, and wages, with criticism of the far right and labor policies. Union leaders highlighted the impact of conflicts and the housing crisis on workers.
In Barcelona, the protest started at plaza Urquinaona, went down Via Laietana stopping at Foment del Treball, and ended at plaza de Correos. Unions CCOO and UGT estimated 10,000 participants, while Guardia Urbana reported 2,500. Secretaries general Belén López (CCOO) and Camil Ros (UGT) summarized demands as “peace, housing, and salary” under the slogan “Against wars and fascism, more rights and more unionism”.
López criticized employers for claiming “fraud” in sick leave: “That's a lie, we exercise our right to health. This country has no absenteeism problem, but presenteeism”. She called for deep reform of the dismissal system and rejected layoffs at firms like Ficosa and Nestlé. She also urged mobilization on May 5 before the Parlament for the dependency law, funded by 2% of GDP from taxes on the rich and companies.
Ros praised historic unionism and the migrant regularization process started last week. He questioned: “Do you know any place where the right or far right won and life is better than before?”. The march ended with the Internationale and Els Segadors.
In Málaga, the central event gathered union leaders Unai Sordo (CCOO) and Pepe Álvarez (UGT), ministers Yolanda Díaz and Elma Saiz, and candidates María Jesús Montero (PSOE) and Antonio Maíllo (Por Andalucía). With the slogan “Rights not trenches: wages, housing, and democracy”, Díaz promised to relaunch the anti-eviction Decree. Álvarez lamented: “It's a shame that Congress prevents people with rentals from staying in their homes”. Sordo demanded two million affordable homes in the next decade.
