Protestsupdated 44m ago2 min read
Coespe Leads Madrid Protest Demanding Dignified Public Pensions, Higher Wages, Housing
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About 25,000 people gathered in Madrid, led by Coespe, demanding dignified pensions, wages, housing. Event occurred in the pre-election period ahead of Spain's upcoming elections.
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“Approximately 25,000 people have gathered in the Spanish capital”
“Nearly 250,00 people are moving through central Madrid”
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Madrid rallies for pensions
Pensioners from across Spain gathered in Madrid to demand dignified public pensions, better wages, and affordable housing as protests continued across Europe. Madrid authorities counted around 25,000 participants while organizers raised the figure to 50,000 people, as the demonstration was led by the National Coordination for the Defense of the Public Pension System (Coespe). Coespe spokesperson Damián Rodríguez said, “Pensions are getting smaller every day relative to the cost of living, and it shows in our homes,” as banners and slogans called for “Salary and pension increases with real CPI” and “Shield public pensions.”
The protest also demanded a 6% increase in pensions for the year 2027 and rejected any attempt at privatization that could jeopardize retirees’ well-being. The Confederation of Tenant Unions joined the mobilization, and it said the daily cost of living increase is “devouring the incomes of millions of people” while calling for salary increases and enhanced benefits to recover purchasing power lost to inflation.
Election fight over privatization
The Madrid march unfolded in a pre-campaign period ahead of the general elections on November 29, with pensions becoming a central topic of the electoral debate.
EL PAÍS said the organizers’ rally drew about 50,000 people according to organizers, while it cited 25,000 according to the Government Delegation, as protesters shouted “Pensions are not sold, pensions are defended!”
Ramón Franquesa, spokesperson for the main organizing association, told EL PAÍS that “Their intention is to move workers’ contributions to a private system,” and he warned, “Financial interests must not enter,”.
Alberto Nunez Feijoo said on Monday that he would continue to raise pensions in line with inflation if his party wins the vote, while Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez accused the right-wing Popular Party (PP) of planning to weaken inflation-linked pension increases.
Emilio Delgado, deputy spokesperson of Mas Madrid in the Assembly of Madrid, posted on X that “no pension should be below the minimum wage. A lifetime of work deserves a dignified retirement.”
Demands, numbers, and pressure
Protesters linked pension demands to the wider cost of living and housing crisis, and they called for an urgent public audit of the pension system while warning about “welfare pensions” (pensions of misery). Damián Rodríguez said, “Pensions are getting smaller every day relative to the cost of living, and it shows in our homes,” and he framed the issue as a future-facing fight tied to the upcoming general elections on November 29. Diario Público said the average pension for retirement in Spain was €1,574, and it added that more than a third of retirees, 2.4 million people, receive less than €1,000.
Diario Público also reported that COESPE demanded a 6% increase in 2027 and called for an increase of the Interprofessional Minimum Wage (SMI) by 7%, reaching €1,307 per month in 14 payments. Teletrece said the march covered about two kilometers between Atocha station and Calle Alcalá, and it quoted Pilar, a 64-year-old early retiree, lamenting that “the trend is to privatize everything.”