Spain general strike on 11 November 2026: what employers and workers need to know

The BOE of 7 November 2026 publishes three orders from the Ministry for the Ecological Transition setting minimum services for the general strike: Orden TED/1179/2026 (oil and gas), Orden TED/1180/2026 (electricity supply) and Orden TED/1181/2026 (state wildfire-fighting resources). According to these orders, the strike is nationwide, runs from 00:00 to 24:00 on 11 November and has been called by CC. OO., UGT and CGT, among other organisations. In workplaces with shifts, the strike starts with the first affected shift even if it begins before 00:00 on the 11th and ends when the last shift finishes, even after 24:00, according to the strike notices quoted in Orden TED/1180/2026 and section six of Orden TED/1179/2026.

The call covers all work activities, in both the private sector and the public sector, across Spain. Minimum services for each sector are set in their own orders or resolutions, so each business should check the one that applies to its activity.

For fuel, Orden TED/1179/2026 sets the minimum service at 20 % of the filling stations registered in the Ministry's census, calculated by comarca (district), and keeps natural gas transport and distribution facilities running.

No. Article 6.2 of Real Decreto-ley 17/1977 states that during a strike the employment contract is suspended and the worker has no right to a salary. The employer deducts the pay for the day not worked; the exact calculation depends on the pay structure and the applicable collective agreement.

Article 6.3 adds that a striking worker remains in 'alta especial' (special registration) with Social Security, and neither the employer nor the worker has to pay contributions. In other words, the worker stays registered, but no contributions are paid for that day.

Anyone who does not join the strike works and is paid as normal: article 6.4 requires respect for the freedom to work of those who choose not to strike.

Exercising the right to strike does not end the employment relationship and cannot lead to any penalty, unless the worker commits a disciplinary offence during the strike (article 6.1 of Real Decreto-ley 17/1977). Dismissing someone for joining the strike breaches a fundamental right and is null under article 55.5 of the Estatuto de los Trabajadores (Workers' Statute); there are 20 working days to challenge it.

While the strike lasts, the employer cannot replace strikers with workers who were not linked to the company when the strike was notified (article 6.5). Spain's labour offences act classes that replacement as a very serious infringement, as well as replacement with staff supplied by a temporary work agency. The Tribunal Supremo (Supreme Court) has also held that covering those posts with staff from other workplaces or other job categories breaches the right to strike.

There is no need to give notice either: according to Constitutional Court judgment 45/2016, a worker has no obligation to tell the employer whether they will join a strike, and the employer has no power to ask.

The employer must guarantee the minimum services set by the order for its sector and, where appropriate, name the specific workers who will cover them before the strike starts. Anyone named for minimum services works that day and is paid as normal.

Afterwards, the strike must be reported to Social Security. The official table of inactivity types in Sistema RED (the Social Security electronic filing system) of the Tesorería General (the Social Security treasury) includes codes for full strike and partial strike, reported through a registration change for each worker who joined it, so that no contributions are charged for that day.

The employer must also respect peaceful publicity for the strike and fundraising without coercion, which article 6.6 of Real Decreto-ley 17/1977 grants to striking workers.