Women all over the country will stay home from work on March 8. The strike has received endorsement from Madrid and Barcelona mayors Manuela Carmena and Ada Colau. Feminist groups have also asked women to spend no money and to ditch their domestic chores for the day. In addition to the strike, different demonstrations will take place throughout the day.
A poll of 1,500 people, quoted in the daily newspaper El País, suggested 82% supported the strike while 76% thought women in Spain had harder lives than men.10 of Spain’s unions have called for 24-hour strikes, but two of the most powerful have asked their members to participate in a two-hour stoppage. Actress and model Penelope Cruz has cancelled planned public events and will go on “domestic” strike. In Spain, women are paid 13% and 19% less than their male counterparts in the public and private sectors respectively. The strike is an effort to end the “macho culture.” One of the strike’s demands is that the government makes greater efforts to fight the salary gap, as well as increase measures to protect women from gender violence.
