A thousand participants in the union initiative
A thousand Calabrian interns are demonstrating in Catanzaro in Piazza Prefettura to ask the government for secure contractual arrangements and greater support from the Region and local authorities where the interns mainly work.
The strike, organized by Nidil Cgil, Felsa Cisl, Uil Temp and Usb Fds is involving temporary workers spread across all Calabrian public administrations.
“The administrations that ask for contractualisation – explained Angelo Sposato, general secretary of the Calabrian CGIL – are asking for something normal.
The solution that has been identified at national level is not sufficient because it does not guarantee the contractualization of workers.
What we ask the government is to do, in addition to the law which should be improved because it does not include all the workers in question, also the financing necessary to carry out the contractualization and we will not stop here if no answers arrive from the government and the Region which is also committed to supporting municipal bodies and administrations. We will continue with the fight and raise the level.”
“We must work cohesively – underlined Tonino Russo, regional secretary of the CISL Calabria – we must immediately find the necessary resources to give dignity to these workers, above all to proceed with the commitment and the agreement also signed with the trade unions, i.e. those to contract these workers at 18 hours. To be able to do this we need 70 million. We don’t ask for forms of welfare, we ask for dignified work. These workers are truly demonstrating a sense of great responsibility. For several years they have been forced, somehow forced, to do an endless internship, without contributions. We have many people who are also close to the pension threshold, but what pension can they calculate if there is a contribution gap that has become a chasm. In the next few days, in the next few weeks there will be corrective measures by the government and therefore on the financial system and we must find the necessary coverage to be able to begin this path which must absolutely aim at the stabilization of these workers and these families”.
“These people – added Maria Elena Senese, general secretary of Uil Calabria – have guaranteed the municipal administrations to move forward, the services in the territories and today there is the risk that they will not be stabilized and as if in Calabria it was normal to have the precarious work. These are the so-called ghost workers that Uil is fighting against. Today we want to say enough to precarious employment and we must do so by focusing on stabilization by recognizing these workers rights and protections that they have not had until now”.
