What does this mean for visitors and residents on Lanzarote?
The strike ended at 24:00 on Wednesday 11 November 2026, and by Friday nobody had announced another date. Daniel Casal of the Federación Sindical Canaria (FSC) did not rule out a further strike on the islands after 11 November.
The Lancelot Digital report does not say which places were affected. It gives no details on resorts in the south of the island, on turnout or on how many businesses were involved.
If you find a restaurant, shop or car hire desk closed, phone or ask the business first. According to the traders, a sign on the door did not always prove that the owner had really shut on 11 November.
What do the traders on Lanzarote complain about?
Small traders and the self-employed on Lanzarote complain about incidents on 11 November, which the local portal Lancelot Digital treats as isolated cases. It reports this in an unsigned article of 13 November.
Some businesses displayed signs announcing a strike closure although the owners had not meant to shut. Customers were therefore given information that did not match reality.
The signs angered those affected. Other owners found their door locks damaged, which made it harder to get into their own shops.
Those affected question the methods used to enforce the strike. Who put up the signs and damaged the locks is unknown.
Lancelot Digital names no union or person and gives no figures for businesses or complaints. The traders are not named, and neither the authorities nor other media have confirmed the account.
On Gran Canaria, nails were reportedly put into the tyres of some guaguas, “according to the incidents reported”, says Lancelot Digital. The report names no source, bus company or further details, and the claim is not confirmed.
What may pickets do, and what not?
The incidents have reopened the debate on how far pickets may go, according to Lancelot Digital. Pickets, known in Spanish as piquetes informativos, are meant to explain the reasons for a strike to workers.
They are also meant to encourage workers to join. The report says the right to strike includes respecting the choice of those who do not take part.
The traders stress that demands can be made without harming businesses that stay open. In cases of coercion or violence, it says, those affected should document what happened and involve the authorities.
For owners with a damaged lock, that means taking photos and considering a police report. Whether the authorities on Lanzarote have received any reports has not been published.
Why did the unions strike?
CCOO and UGT, the two big unions, called the first general strike in Spain in 14 years together with CGT and other groups. The last one was in 2012, against Rajoy’s labour market reform.
The unions cite 211,000 empty homes in the Canary Islands and the most expensive rental market in Spain. By their account, wages are about 500 euros below the state average, but neither figure has been checked against ISTAC or INE data.
CCOO Canarias named the final trigger as the eviction and death of an 87-year-old woman in Madrid. Two housing decrees failed in parliament.
A strike needs a demand tied to labour rights, so the unions stress pay. UGT Canarias head Manuel Navarro, speaking in Las Palmas, called it a clearly labour-law strike without ruling out the political side.
Employers doubted its labour-law basis. According to Vozpópuli, CEOE head Antonio Garamendi called the strike electoral tactics and announced he would challenge it.
What is still open?
The unions had not answered the traders’ accusations by Friday. Business associations on Lanzarote have not commented either.
The Cabildo (island government) sets the minimum services for intercity buses on Lanzarote. No such order could be found for 11 November.
Nobody has counted turnout, demonstrations and incidents on Lanzarote itself so far. Until the authorities or associations publish figures, the signs and locks remain accounts from individual traders, relayed by a local portal.