Cgil: “We strike with the whole of Europe”

“Austerity policies don’t work, we need a European pact that puts back in the centre the rights of the workforce”. In this way Franco Stasi, Cgil’s provincial secretary, motivates the agreement to the four hours general strike organized on  Wednesday 14 November by the European Confederation of trade union (Cesm Etuc, Egb Defs). It is the first time that there is a European union mobilization, but in Italy only the Cgil have agreed and in a very delicate moment, if we consider that on Thursday in Rome the negotiation for the productivity will resume. “We have worked on a national level” continues Stasi, “so that  Cisl and Uil would have taken part, unfortunately it hasn’t been possible to do it in a unitary way. It is essential to know that this is not an initiative against someone, but it is done to suggest a different economic policy, the respect for the trade-union and citizenship rights”.

The summits of via Nino Bixio, underline the hard situation of the Province of Varese that in October had registered an increase of 13% redundancy in comparison to 2011: the ordinary redundancy have an exponential growth of 44% (17,842,247 hours) while the extraordinary redundancy slows down (-11.35%) and in exception (-17.17%), the discharges are catching on 3,629 (+7.85%), just in October the new members on the mobility lists were 414.

Manifestations are expected in at least a hundred Italian cities and for some sectors the strike won’t be of four hours but of eight hours. “It is about commerce, school, university and research, public functions,” explains Marinella Magnoni of the Cgil secretariat. “There won’t be a procession but a garrison in Garibaldino square in Varese from 9:30 to 12 pm because then the employers will have to come back to work. To facilitate people who come from outside we have organized some buses to reach Varese”.

The buses will leave from Busto Arsizio (Trade Union Headquarters at 8 am), Luino (Station square at 7:45 am), Saronno (Trade Union Headquarters at 8 am), Gallarate (Sorelle Ramonda large square at 8:15 am), Besozzo (Trade Union Headquarters  via XXV Aprile 8:15 am), Tradate (Trade Union Headquarters 8:30 am). After the interventions of the representatives of categories, the garrison Nino Baseotto, Cgil Lombardy secretary, will close. An important unscheduled, this time within the initiatives of the Fondazione Città Futura (City of the future Foundation) is the presence of the national clerk of the Cgil Susanna Camusso expected for Friday 16 November at 15 o’clock at the Ata Hotel of via Albani. The national secretary will be interviewed from the assistant manager of the Unity Rinaldo Gianola on the topic “ideas for the relaunching of work and the economy”.