Education sets minimum services ahead of the strike at the Complutense

The Regional Ministry of Education, Science and Universities of the Community of Madrid has established the essential minimum services on the occasion of the strike called for October 14, 2026, at the Complutense University of Madrid (UCM). The measure is formalized in Order 4322/2026, of October 8, signed by the regional minister Mercedes Zarzalejo Carbajo, and is published in BOCM no. 244, of October 13, 2026, within section I.C) Other Provisions.

Union Call and Scope of the Strike

Representatives of Comisiones Obreras (CC. OO.), Confederación General del Trabajo (CGT), Confederación Nacional del Trabajo (CNT), and Unión General de Trabajadores (UGT) sent the strike call communication on October 3, 2026, for October 14, 2026, representing their affiliated workers at the UCM. The strike extends to all teaching and research staff and all technical management, administration, and service staff of the Madrid public university.

The order is issued under Article 3 of Royal Decree-Law 17/1977, of March 4, on Labor Relations, and designates the Regional Ministry of Education, Science and Universities as the governing authority for the purposes of Article 10 of the same regulation. The text invokes Article 28.2 of the Spanish Constitution, which recognizes the right to strike, and Article 27, which enshrines the right to education, as well as the principle of university autonomy in Article 27.10.

Minimum Services Established for October 14

The regulation details the minimum services that must be maintained during the strike day:

• In faculties, centers, and buildings: the manager and/or administrator, along with one person responsible for opening during the morning shift and one person responsible for closing during the afternoon shift.
• In the Security Control Unit: the Director of the Security Unit; five security guards on the morning shift; five on the afternoon shift; and seven on the night shift along with the Team Leader, to cover the two campuses.
• In the Veterinary Clinical Hospital: the Manager; one person responsible for opening during the morning shift; one responsible for closing during the afternoon shift; one responsible for the care and feeding of large animals; and one responsible for the care and feeding of small animals.
• In the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine: one person responsible for Animal Facilities and the Farm.
• In the Animal Facility of the Faculty of Medicine: one person responsible for Animal Facilities.
• In the Residential Colleges: one worker in each College per shift, with five reception technicians on morning, afternoon, and night shifts.
• In the maintenance service (mobile unit): one plumber, one locksmith, one electrician, one thermal plant manager, and one driver.

Prior Negotiation and Legal Effects

The order states that on October 7, 2026, meetings were held between the Management of the Complutense University of Madrid and the representation of the Strike Committee formed by the calling unions, which resulted in a proposal for agreed minimum services. The Management forwarded this proposal to the Regional Ministry, which incorporates it into the published text.

The managers and administrators of faculties, centers, and buildings shall guarantee the opening at the start of the working day and shall remain at the center performing their duties. They shall be the ones to determine by name, either by the will of the workers or by lottery according to the schedule, the persons assigned to the minimum services, and those who provide information on the monitoring of the strike. Failure to comply with these obligations will be sanctioned in accordance with the applicable regulations.

The order takes effect on the day of its publication in the BOCM and exhausts the administrative route. An optional appeal for reversal may be filed before the regional minister within one month, or a contentious-administrative appeal within two months, pursuant to articles 123 and 124 of Law 39/2015 and article 46 of Law 29/1998.

The text emphasizes that the establishment of minimum services does not limit the rights that the strike regulatory legislation recognizes for personnel who support the stoppage. The Regional Ministry justifies the measure based on the need to not deprive the community of an essential service and to protect both the students’ right to education and the right to work of those who do not support the strike, including care, maintenance, and surveillance functions of the facilities.

Source: BOCM, no. 244, of October 13, 2026, section I.C) Other Provisions, page 240 (official reference: BOCM-20261013-28, Order 4322/2026).