Teachers, doctors, and taxi drivers protest in Barcelona
Around 15,000 workers from health and education sectors took to the streets
Wednesday saw protests in the fields of education, health, and taxis all taking place in Barcelona.
Teachers unions, doctors unions, and organizations representing other medical professionals have called for the strikes to "defend public services," demanding an increase in pay as well as more members of staff to be hired to lessen workloads.
Around 15,000 workers from the health and education sectors took to the streets of the Catalan capital, according to local police Guàrdia Urbana. Marches were seen from Passeig de Gràcia, Plaça de Sant Jaume, and outside the Catalan parliament throughout the day.
Meanwhile, taxi drivers voiced their anger against the growth of ride-hailing platforms such as Free Now and Uber, arguing they endanger the fixed fare model.
Various teachers' unions gathered in the city center in the morning and marched down Passeig de Gràcia toward Barcelona's old town.
The Ministry of Education said that 7.48% of teachers were taking part in the strike by the morning, a figure that counted responses from only 64% of education centers in the territory.
Teachers and students gathered in Plaça Sant Jaume during the morning, where the Catalan government headquarters building is located.
Up to 5,000 people there called for the resignation of education minister Josep Gonzàlez-Cambray, where various flags from the unions USTEC, Intersindical, CGT, IAC were seen.
Meanwhile, the strike called by unions Doctors of Catalonia and Intersindical-CSC has been followed by 17.5% of doctors and 0.8% of the rest of staff, as reported by the Department of Health counting 47% of the health centers. In Primary Care Centers (CAPs), 33.5% of the doctors are taking part in the protest as well as 3.4% of the other staff.
However, a figure provided by the Doctors of Catalonia union themselves raises the following of the strike to 75%.