general strike

American  

noun

1. a mass strike in all or many trades and industries in a section or in all parts of a country.

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general strike British  

noun

1. a strike by all or most of the workers of a country, province, city, etc, esp ( caps. ) such a strike that took place in Britain in 1926

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general strike Cultural  

1. A strike of all of the workers in a nation or area. General strikes are usually brief and designed to show the unity of the working class.

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Etymology

Origin of general strike

An Americanism dating back to 1800–10

Example Sentences

Silver Lake sports bar Untamed Spirits and Canyon Coffee in Echo Park said on social media that they will be closed Friday for the general strike.

From Los Angeles Times

At the end of that year a general strike brought the country to a halt.

From The Wall Street Journal

It followed a call for a general strike by exiled Kurdish opposition groups in response to the deadly crackdown on protests in the region.

From BBC

Iraq-based Iranian Kurdish opposition parties, including the Komala party which is outlawed by Tehran, called for a general strike on Thursday in Kurdish-populated areas in western Iran which have seen intense protest activity.

From Barron's

By some estimates, a nationwide general strike would be enough to hobble the economy in about a week.

From Salon