Spanish women hold nationwide strike against inequality and macho culture

Protesters hold up gloves while taking part in a strike for women's rights in Portugalete, Spain on International Women's Day. REUTERS/Vincent West

MADRID (Reuters) - Women across Spain went on strike and held street protests against gender inequality on Thursday, including midnight pot-banging rallies, bike demos and demonstrations under the rain in city squares.

Authorities did not say how many participated in Spain's first-ever women nationwide strike held on International Women's Day, but the country's two largest unions said more than 5 million women took part.

"I lived under the dictatorship, I lived under democracy and we haven't made much headway. A lot remains to be done and we, in the education sector, have a big role to play," said 50-year-old teacher Concha Noverges on a picket line at a public school in Madrid.

Protesters take part in a demonstration for women's rights in Bilbao, Spain on International Women's Day. REUTERS/Vincent West

Hundreds had kicked off the action in the capital with a pot banging protest at midnight on the Puerta del Sol central square.

Spain ranked 27th in a list of 188 countries in the United Nations' latest Gender Inequality Index. However, Spanish women's access to the labor market remains well below the European average because the lack of state support and because Spanish "macho" culture often pushes them to leave their jobs to care for their children or aging parents.

Several more protests were held in Madrid and Barcelona throughout the day and rallies were also due to take place on Thursday night in Spain's main cities.

A woman takes part in a demonstration for women's rights on International Women's Day in Oviedo, Spain March 8, 2018. REUTERS/Eloy Alonso

In Bilbao in northern Spain thousands of women gathered near the city's famous Guggenheim museum, holding signs with slogans such as "Justice!", "Fight like a girl" and "Revolution."

Protesters take part in a demonstration for women's rights on International Women's Day in Oviedo, Spain, March 8, 2018. REUTERS/Eloy Alonso

(Reporting by Blanca Rodriguez ; Writing by Jesús Aguado; Editing by Julien Toyer and Raissa Kasolowsky)

Protesters form triangles with their hands during a demonstration for women's rights in Bilbao, Spain, March 8, 2018, on International Women's Day. REUTERS/Vincent West

Sculpture is covered with black mask during a demonstration for women's rights on International Women's Day, in Oviedo, Spain March 8, 2018. REUTERS/Eloy Alonso

Protesters take part in a demonstration for women's rights, on International Women's Day in Oviedo, Spain March 8, 2018. REUTERS/Eloy Alonso

A protester holds a banner reading "Fight Like A Girl" during a demonstration for women's rights on International Women's Day in Bilbao, Spain. REUTERS/Vincent West

Women dance during a protest as as part of a nationwide feminist strike on International Women's Day in Madrid, Spain, March 8, 2018. REUTERS/Susana Vera

Protesters take part in a demonstration for women's rights, on International Women's Day in Oviedo, Spain March 8, 2018. REUTERS/Eloy Alonso

A protester hangs gloves with messages while taking part in a strike for women's rights in Portugalete, Spain on International Women's Day. REUTERS/Vincent West

People gather during a nationwide feminist strike on International Women's Day at Cibeles Square in Madrid, Spain, March 8, 2018. The placard reads: "Justice". REUTERS/Sergio Perez