Early Spanish Labor Movements: Genesis, Conditions, and Ideologies
Genesis and Development of Worker Movement in Spain
The 1860 census reveals the workforce structure:
- Day laborers were the largest group, primarily in the south (Andalusia).
- Workers and miners comprised 2.5% of the workforce, concentrated in Catalonia.
Living Conditions
The working class faced harsh conditions:
- Over twelve-hour workdays
- Lower wages for women and children
- Job insecurity
- Lack of hygiene in homes and workplaces
- No welfare state (vacation pay, etc.)
Agricultural laborers’ conditions were worse:
- Hunger wages
- Child labor
- Seasonal unemployment
- Lack of land ownership
Some migrated to industrial centers, while others resorted to banditry. The Civil Guard was created in 1844 to combat this and ensure rural order.
Early Workers’ and Peasants’ Movements (1840-1868)
The labor movement primarily took shape in Catalonia. Early protests included machine-breaking, similar to England and France. In 1840, the first workers’ association, the Weavers Mutual Protection of Barcelona, was founded. It provided unemployment support and strike assistance but faced employer opposition and had a short lifespan. Labor unions remained illegal or barely tolerated until 1868. Rural unrest in Andalusia often involved hunger-driven land occupations, which were largely unsuccessful.
Labor Movement and the First International (1868-1874)
The Democratic Sexenio was crucial for Spanish labor, coinciding with industrial growth. The working class increasingly recognized the need for unity and international integration.
Workers’ International Association
The International Association was founded in London to coordinate global worker efforts. Marx drafted its manifesto and statutes, but other ideologies, like Bakunin’s anarchism, emerged. The movement split after the Hague Congress:
- Marx secured the adoption of working-class political parties and expelled Bakunin.
- Bakunin and his supporters declared themselves the AIT’s legitimate successors in Saint-Imier.
The socialist faction later founded the Second International in Paris.
The Evolution of the Labor Movement in Spain
After Spain’s Glorious Revolution, freedom of association was recognized. Bakunin sent Giuseppe Fanelli to Spain, who established anarchist-leaning branches in Madrid and Barcelona. Paul Lafargue, Marx’s son-in-law, later attempted to shift the Spanish International towards Marxism. This led to a split between socialists, led by Pablo Iglesias (future founder of the Spanish Socialist Workers Party), and anarchists. In 1873, Catalan workers achieved some gains (e.g., a 64-hour workweek), but the Spanish Regional Federation’s refusal to participate in elections weakened the Republic. After Pavia’s coup, General Serrano’s dictatorship outlawed the AIT and labor unions.
Marxism
Marxism is a systematic theory, philosophical and economic, developed by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. They posited that class struggle drives history. The working class, in its fight against the bourgeoisie, would achieve socialism through state control. This required a strong organization to transform the state into a tool for workers and the construction of socialism.