Bus Strike

After studio on Tuesday the 12th, I was walking to meet a friend for lunch. We met at the Liceu metro stop, and walked into the Gothic district looking for a good Menu del Dia. We walked past the architecture library on Carrer de Bisbe and we start to hear chanting. As it gets louder and louder we can start to tell that somewhere ahead are a loud angry group of men.

We ran the last little bit of Bisbe left and ended up in Placa de Sant Juame where about 300 men and women were gathered in protest. After reading their picket signs and a broken Spanish conversation with some other students nearby we discovered that they were bus drives on strike. The other students couldn't give us any more information, or we just couldn't understand...but after I got back to my computer I looked up some information on this situation. It turns out this is the third strike in the last few months as the bus drivers are protesting their six day a week work schedule. They want an extra day of leisure.

I also learned that on the last strike the CGT (Confederation General de Treball / Union for Bus workers) picketed all the bust stop locations in order to make sure scabs couldn't keep the buses running. If they found a bus in operation they would throw paint at the windshield, and one bus was actually stopped and the occupants were forced to evacuate by and angry group of bus drivers.

Just thought a little current events info might be pretty interesting, thank you come'again.