The Labor Movement in Spain: From Authoritarianism to Democracy

Abstract

After the death of Francisco Franco in 1975 the Spanish authoritarian regime' transformed itself (under pressure from the opposition) into a parliamentary democracy. This regime change was both cause and consequence of broader changes in Spanish society. This paper deals with the development of the labor movement in the newly established freedom, concentrating on an analysis of the 1978 union elections, the first under the new regime. The formation of the new labor relations system is closely related to the regime transition: labor played a major role among the forces pressing for an end to authoritarian rule, and the establishment of a new basis for labor relations is a matter placed on the agenda by all components of the regime that founded the coalition, though it has not been a subject for easy agreement among those involved.2 More directly relevant for this study is the close relationship of the union system to the formation of the new party system3 of polarized pluralism4: the two largest unions are linked to the major parties of the Spanish Left, the Socialist party (PSOE) and the Communist party (PCE).