Briefing
Mérida (Extremadura), 11 November 2026 – The regional leaders of Comisiones Obreras (Comisiones Obreras Extremadura) and the Unión General de Trabajadores (Unión General de Trabajadores Extremadura), María Berrocal and Patro Sánchez, criticised on the morning of 11 November what they said was a visible police presence that had hindered information pickets in Mérida. According to the unions, activists were unable to approach workers at workplace entrances as planned to explain the reasons for and aims of the nationwide general strike.
Berrocal described an incident in the El Prado industrial estate in front of a municipal waste-disposal facility, where union members said they had been prevented from speaking to workers. Sánchez described similar situations during early actions at other workplaces in the city. The two unions cited higher wages, affordable housing, price protection and the protection of public services as their main demands.
The unions’ allegations come against the backdrop of an instruction issued by Spain’s Ministry of the Interior on 10 November, stating that police forces were to plan measures to ensure the general strike proceeded and to prevent violent pickets. The instruction names industrial estates, central markets and critical infrastructure among the priority locations for deployment.
Legally, piquete informativo are considered part of the right to strike in Spain; coercion and violence are prohibited. The dispute in Mérida therefore concerns the tension between maintaining public order and the fundamental right to inform workers about a strike. The security authorities stress their duty to protect supply routes and public safety, while CCOO and UGT argue that police measures must not disproportionately restrict union information work.
For Mérida, the first day of the strike was a test: while the two unions speak of interference with the organisation of the stoppage, the authorities defend a precautionary presence at key locations. By the afternoon of 11 November, it was not yet known whether formal complaints or legal action would follow over specific deployments. The unions said they would continue to assess how the strike was unfolding.
Editor: Mira Cadena (Article created with AI assistance).