The Plaça de la Constitució filled on Thursday with the largest May Day crowd the capital has seen in a decade. Organisers placed the figure above four thousand; the Guardia's own count, circulated quietly among the ministries by evening, was not materially lower. The federations marched under the banner "Dignity for Every Worker," with the fishing and hospitality unions leading the column from the Harbour Gate.

The speeches concerned the seasonal labour contracts that govern perhaps a third of the coastal workforce. Critics argue the contracts leave workers without cover in the off-season; defenders reply that the sector could not bear year-round obligations. The debate is old. The turnout was not.

A counter-demonstration of some two hundred gathered near the Harbour Gate and dispersed without incident. The Guardia's posture throughout was light, and no arrests were reported.

Prime Minister Blanch, attending a civic ceremony in Cordoba, addressed the marchers' concerns in general terms and committed the Government to a parliamentary debate on labour reform before the summer recess. The commitment is the furthest the Prime Minister has gone on the matter since taking office, and the federations received it warily rather than warmly.

The Herald notes, without enthusiasm for the observation, that a summer debate on seasonal contracts will arrive in a Chamber already crowded with the fuel reserve, the registry breach, and — as of Thursday — the northern tariff question.