Spanish trade unions call for general strike

SPAIN: Labour unions in Spain have called for a general strike unless José María Aznar's government withdraws plans to tighten unemployment benefit rules for the country's 2.4 million jobless. Union General de Trabajadores (UGT) and Comisiones Obreras (CC.OO) have called the stoppage on June 20, two days before a European Union summit in Seville, to cause maximum embarrassment to the prime minister. (In Basque, trade unions ELA and LAB have called for a general strike on June 19.) Mr Aznar wants to deny unemployment benefit to those who refuse job offers within a 50 km radius of their home town. He believes the lack of labour mobility is one of the main reasons that Spain's unemployment rate, at 12.75 per cent, remains the highest in the EU. Trade unions, however, reject any measures that would restrict benefits. Already, they say, that more than 40 per cent of Spaniards who are out of work are not entitled to unemployment benefits. Furthermore, labour law changes during the past six years have made it cheaper for employers to fire workers. They have also encouraged the abuse of "temporary contracts" that are renewed weekly and which deprive employees of compensation if they are fired. The IMF firmly supports the General Strike on June 19 (ELA, LAB), as well as the General Strike on June 20 (UGT, CC.OO).