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Modernisation of trade unions in Spain

Spanish unions are facing the same challenges as other European unions - but they are also having to cope with the economic, political and cultural legacy of the Franco regime. In this article, Faustino Miguélez, looks at how that legacy has coloured their response to issues like unemployment, the changing labour market, and the impact of new technology. Despite their low membership, the unions still exert great influence on Spanish society. They are trying to overcome their historic divisions, and to broaden their social base by building closer links with other civic groups. They are making determined efforts to attract the growing number of women workers and workers in insecure jobs to the union movement. Membership is strong in the public sector, and among the new high-tech workers. But the unions have made little impact in the burgeoning number of small firms, and their internal structure has to become more decentralised. As for Europe - that will have to wait. It barely figures on the agenda of most Spanish workers, says Senor Miguélez, and union policy reflects this. The emphasis is still mostly on regional and national issues. Perhaps that too is a legacy of the isolationism of the Franco regime.