Alt CampAlt EmpordàAlt PenedèsAlt UrgellAlta RibagorçaAnoiaAranBagesBaix CampBaix EbreBaix EmpordàBaix LlobregatBaix PenedèsBarcelonèsBerguedàCerdanyaConca de BarberàGarrafGarriguesGarrotxaGironèsLluçanèsMaresmeMoianèsMontsiàNogueraOsonaPallars JussàPallars SobiràPla d'UrgellPla de l'EstanyPrioratRibera d'EbreRipollèsSegarraSegriàSelvaSolsonèsTarragonèsTerra AltaUrgellVallès OccidentalVallès OrientalAlt CampAlt EmpordàAlt PenedèsAlt UrgellAlta RibagorçaAnoiaAranBagesBaix CampBaix EbreBaix EmpordàBaix LlobregatBaix PenedèsBarcelonèsBerguedàCerdanyaConca de BarberàGarrafGarriguesGarrotxaGironèsLluçanèsMaresmeMoianèsMontsiàNogueraOsonaPallars JussàPallars SobiràPla d'UrgellPla de l'EstanyPrioratRibera d'EbreRipollèsSegarraSegriàSelvaSolsonèsTarragonèsTerra AltaUrgellVallès OccidentalVallès Oriental
CA|ES|EN

Diari de Catalunya

Unions Demand More Investment and Labor Improvements in Tarragona May Day Demonstration

UGT and CCOO led a march in Tarragona to call for business investments, unblocking the metal sector agreement, and improving working conditions.

Generic image of a protest with banners and people in the street.
IA

Generic image of a protest with banners and people in the street.

Hundreds of people mobilized in Tarragona during the May Day demonstration, called by UGT and CCOO, to denounce the lack of business investments and the increase in precarious labor in the region.

The march, which paraded through the city center under the slogan 'Peace, Housing, and Salary,' highlighted the unions' concern about the economic and labor situation in the region. Union representatives pointed to the lack of investments following several Employment Regulation Files (EREs) at companies such as Nestlé and International Paper.
“

"We do not see investments in the chemical industry; on the contrary. We see a chemical industrial park where companies are being dismantled, made smaller, and investments are not arriving."

the general secretary of CCOO in Tarragona
In addition to the demand for investments, the unions have called for the unblocking of the metal sector agreement, negotiations for which resumed two weeks ago. They emphasized that this sector, traditionally synonymous with stability, is experiencing increasing precarization.
“

"It is a sector that has been synonymous with stability for people, and this is being lost. What used to be the middle class, who normally worked in well-paid industry, are now more precarious. Companies increasingly base their competitiveness on making their workers more precarious."

the general secretary of UGT
Concern about employment is intensified by data from the latest Active Population Survey (EPA), which shows an increase of 12,100 unemployed people during the first quarter of 2026 in Camp de Tarragona and Terres de l'Ebre, bringing the total figure to 56,500 unemployed, a growth of over 28.3%.
During the demonstration, emphasis was also placed on the need to update the occupational risk prevention law, after three fatal workplace accidents and more than 2,000 incidents were recorded in the Tarragona and Ebro regions in the first four months of 2026. Calls were made to toughen sanctions and strengthen inspection tasks.
The gathering, which brought together half a thousand people according to police sources, also included other territorial demands such as improved railway services and 24/7 stroke care in Tarragona, as well as global demands such as world peace, salary improvements, reduced working hours, and the extraordinary regularization of migrants.

Related News