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‘You can't start a fire without a spark’: strikes and class struggle in the Basque Country, 1914-36

Author

Listed:
  • Stefan Houpt

    (Universidad Carlos III Madrid)

  • Juan Carlos Rojo Cagigal

    (Universidad Carlos III Madrid)

Abstract

"What drove social conflict in Spain’s industrial areas in the period before its Civil War? This paper is concerned with contrasting the determinants of working class conflictivity in northern Spain at the beginning of the twentieth century. We concentrate on the region of Biscay, one of Spain’s emerging industrial districts. Labour relations in Biscay have been extensively examined, but the economic factors behind the processes of bargaining have never been formally revealed. We seek to discover the forces behind and the consequences of the shifting power in negotiations over the period preceding the Spanish Civil War. Using monthly data from 1914 until 1936 the empirical analysis is especially concerned with testing the importance of economic factors in labour conflict. The variables to be included in the contrasts are related with business cycles, real incomes, family cost of living, delinquency, deprivation, and the different actors involves in labour conflicts. Our results suggest that in addition to institutional, political and ideological elements that have been considered the main drivers of conflict over this period, relative material deprivation and redistribution also played an important role."

Suggested Citation

  • Stefan Houpt & Juan Carlos Rojo Cagigal, 2012. "‘You can't start a fire without a spark’: strikes and class struggle in the Basque Country, 1914-36," Working Papers 12012, Economic History Society.
    • Handle: RePEc:ehs:wpaper:12012
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
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