Trade strike, new mobilization on April 25th

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After the strike on Easter Saturday, large-scale retail workers are ready for a new protest on April 25th, the holiday and the closest spring weekend.

Meanwhile, the opinion on the outcome of the protest is diametrically opposed between unions and companies. Federdistribuzione, in announcing a, in its opinion, reduced participation in the protest (just 8-9 percent of the workers affected) reiterates its willingness to discuss the renewal of the sector contract.

The inconveniences in the sales points are “limited and there are no difficulties with purchases”, highlights Federdistribuzione which, states that it has not taken action. After the strike on Easter Saturday, workers in large-scale retail trade are ready for a new protest on the 25th April, the holidays and the closest spring long weekend “there was never a lack of willingness to negotiate in the various phases that followed one another in the previous months and during the last meeting on 26 and 27 March he was open to recognizing the salary increases expressly requested by the trade union organisations, having always considered it important to protect workers and guarantee sustainability for businesses”.

In the tertiary sector, after the agreement deemed satisfactory by the workers’ representatives signed with Confcommercio and Confesercenti, there was instead a breakdown in the negotiations for the renewal of the national contract for modern distribution. Contrary to what was stated by the counterpart, the unions appear satisfied: “In the meantime we have asked the workers not to be available for Easter and Easter Monday – Filcams-Cgil, Fisascat-Cisl and Uiltucs-Uil say – then the fight will continue until there is a new negotiating table.

If necessary we will call for a break from work again on April 25th.” “Many supermarkets have had to close: there is significant participation with peaks of 90% and 100% – says Nella Milazzo of Filcams – it is a very important signal that Federdistribuzione should grasp. In exchange for an economic reward of 240 euros gross per month, they want to remove the rights and this is unthinkable.” “They recognized 70 euros which would be the equivalent of the first tranche of the previous contract renewal”, explains Giuseppe Atzori of Fisascat Cisl, “but it is their initiative which is not supported by any type of agreement”. According to Cristiano Ardau (Uiltucs), “it is shameful that workers in a supermarket have worse conditions than their colleagues who do the exact same job in a supermarket that is a member of other associations: it is also an ethical question. It’s unacceptable.”