Labor rally: Spain slams workers’ rights reform (PHOTOS, VIDEO)

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Labor rally: Spain slams workers’ rights reform (PHOTOS, VIDEO)

March 29th, 2012

FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda

Spanish labor unions are raging in the streets again – protesting against labor reforms, which the government sees as a breath of fresh air for the country’s choking economy. Protesters fear eventually falling under the mercy of their employers.

“They want to end labor and social rights and finish off everything” is the theme of Thursday’s 24-hour general strike and rallies.

Hundreds of union members are already flocking to the streets of Madrid, attempting to block trucks crossing the picket line or close stores that remain open. Demonstrators are putting stickers on stores which read “Closed. 29 March General Strike.“

At least 58 people have already been detained by police in the capital. They were mostly picketers trying to stop night shift workers getting to jobs in public transport, factories and wholesale markets. Nine people have been injured in clashes, including six police officers, reports the Associated Press.

A Molotov cocktail was thrown at a police car in the eastern city of Murcia, said a spokeswoman for the Interior Ministry. The police car burnt down; two police officers were injured in the flames.

Unions claim over 250,000 people will join the strike. But the ruling party expects no more than 7,000 to take part. Over 80 demonstrations are expected to roll out across the country on Thursday, mostly in the late afternoon and evening.

The Cabinet says the labor reforms, approved last month as a decree law with immediate effect, will bring flexibility to the workplace and simplify rules for employers. Protesters fear the actual effect will be that sacking workers will become cheaper and quicker. They say with the new legislation bosses will be able to cut wages or change other working conditions just by citing concerns over profits.

Watch more on labor unions’ protests in Spain

Nevertheless, many Spaniards are debating whether it is worth while to join Thursday’s strike. Walking out would cost them a loss of a day’s wage, while many salaries have already been cut or frozen due to the financial crisis, especially in the budget sphere. This, and the redundancy rate of 23 percent, a eurozone high, makes people stick to their jobs even closer than ever. In Spain, over 5.3 million people are on the doll, half of them youngsters.

This is the first general strike against the government of Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, who took office in December. The PM is said to have expected the labor reform to cost him a general strike, as Spanish media caught him saying on an open microphone almost two months ago.

The labor decree comes as one piece in a bunch of measures aimed to support Spain’s staggering economy. On Friday, Rajoy is set to announce the country’s budget, including a second package of austerity cuts. The previous reduction measures were some $20 billion (15 billion euro) worth, and new cuts are expected to be as huge. With the new round of belt tightening, the government hopes to meet the requirements of the EU and other international investors reducing Spain’s deficit to 5.3 percent GDP this year, and to 3 percent next year.

A truck is escorted by riot police officers as union picketers try to stop it at the entrance of Malaga’s main food warehouse “MercaMalaga”, at the start of a nationwide general strike in Malaga, Spain early March 29, 2012 (Reuters / Jon Nazca)

Protesters shout at buses next to riot police at the entrance of one of the parking lots of Madrid’s municipal buses, at the start of a general strike in Spain March 29, 2012 (Reuters / Andrea Comas)

Youngsters protest during a national strike in Madrid on March 29, 2012 (AFP Photo / Pedro Armestre)

People shout as they stand next to a man whose face is covered in blood after being struck by police during a national strike in Madrid on March 29, 2012 (AFP Photo / Pedro Armestre)