Strike at the Delphi Factory.
In January 2007 Delphi, the automotive components company and subsidiary of GM, announced that it wanted to close it’s factory in Puerto Real, a town close to the historic port of Cadiz and relocate to Morocco where labour is cheap and un-unionised. This announcement was met with horror amongst workers and residents alike as such a closure would have disastrous consequences for an area where most of the traditional industry has disappeared and unemployment is already running at forty percent – a rate amongst the highest in Europe. Immediately the unionised work force took action in the hope that it may prevent this action. Coinciding with local elections this movement was, for a short time, high profile but, once the politicians were safely back in power they did little to improve matters. In an attempt to keep the matter in the public consciousness the wives of the workers began a daily march from their homes to meet with their husbands at the factory gates. Prior to these marches many of the wives had not previously met but have subsequently become firm friends. Furthermore, these marches have helped the community pull together and fight for the rights of the workers, many of whom have worked in the factory since it opened over twenty-five years ago.
