WORLD WORLDWIDE EUROPE SPAIN - News journal UPDATE - (en) Spaine, CNT: ASSESSMENT OF THE MARCH 17 STRIKE - PRESS RELEASE (ca, de, it, pt, tr)[machine translation]

 It is possible to be present, to intervene, and to set our own agenda, without depending on or being diluted by external dynamics.

Another way of doing unionism is more necessary than ever.
The CNT considers the March 17 strike in the Basque Country and Navarre a clear success of our union intervention. In a context of worsening living conditions, we have demonstrated that it is possible to be present, to intervene, and to set our own agenda, without depending on or being diluted by external dynamics.

We want to highlight the unity of action maintained with critical sectors of a political nature. This coordination has been positive and useful, allowing us to contribute on concrete issues without relinquishing our autonomy, while maintaining a clear and coherent line.

STRIKE? WHAT STRIKE?

Having said this, it is necessary to clearly define the role of ELA and LAB. The strike did not originate in the workplaces or from a genuine process of consultation with the working class. The decision was made from above, and then people were called upon to support it. This approach follows a predetermined plan, where the conflict is designed beforehand and framed within a logic that also prioritizes identity-based conformity, distancing the strike from its natural base: the organized working class.

When those who will participate in the strike are not consulted, the conflict loses its power. It becomes something directed, planned, and limited, more concerned with fitting into strategic frameworks than with being built from the daily reality of factories, workshops, and offices.

WHERE WE SHOULD BE

Faced with the attitude of certain union and social actors who have opted for uncritical adherence to the Basque union majority, we are committed to joining the mobilizations alongside other critical union sectors to promote a real alternative and build an independent and combative workers' movement. We unequivocally defend class interests.

The CNT has been where it needed to be: with its own voice, its own criteria, and its own intervention. We have defended a unionism based on self-organization, direct action, and the centrality of workplaces as the real space for decision-making. We believe that this practice not only preserves the organization's coherence but also opens real paths to a future for combative unionism in the region.

IN CONCLUSION

March 17th leaves one clear conclusion: it is possible to intervene without submitting, to collaborate without being diluted, and to build without copying. And for the CNT, that is a source of pride.

We continue to advocate for a unionism that originates in the workplace, that is decided from the ground up, and reinforces the fact that another way of doing unionism is necessary, now.

Vitoria-Gasteiz, March 20, 2026
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NATIONAL CONFEDERATION OF LABOR
Union of Various Trades
Correría, 65, ground floor - 01001 | P.O. Box 1554 - 01080
945282974 / 688861364
cntgasteiz@gmail.com
vitoria.cnt.es | vitoria.cnt.es/mh/
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Link: (en) Spaine, CNT: ASSESSMENT OF THE MARCH 17 STRIKE - PRESS RELEASE (ca, de, it, pt, tr)[machine translation]

Source: A-infos-en@ainfos.ca