This afternoon, in conjunction and in solidarity with the strike and demonstration promoted in Latina, a demonstration was held in Florence in front of the Prefecture in via Cavour for Satnam Singh, the laborer killed for failure to provide aid in an inhumane and severely exploitative condition working.
The presidium was promoted by CGIL, Arci, AltroDiritto, Oxfam, Florence Must Act, Nosotras, Cat, Consorzio Metropoli, Anelli Mancanti, Medu, Msna, Limo, Progetto Arcobaleno, Cospe, Progetto Accoglienza, Il Girasole, Consorzio Coeso, Libera, Associazione of the Senegalese of Florence and its surroundings, Association of Honduras, Association of Colombia, Njinga Mbande APS. Who say: “It is not acceptable to lose your life at work, even for failure to provide aid in a condition of barbarity and work exploitation. Enough with labor exploitation and enough with the policies and rules that force migrants into a condition of irregularity and blackmail.”
The CGIL Florence note: “Even in Florence there are growing phenomena of labor exploitation which affect not only agriculture but also the manufacturing, tertiary and logistics sectors. A massive intervention by the institutions and inspection forces is needed in concert with the trade unions and associations involved in projects to combat labor exploitation. Nonetheless, it is clear that the priority is to change the rules that force migrants into a condition of extreme blackmail and vulnerability, depriving them of regular entry and a residence permit, to free them from these new forms of slavery.”
The Flai Cgil Firenze note (the category that follows agricultural workers): “As Flai Cgil Firenze we are at this stand for Satnam Singh, the laborer killed in Latina by exploitation and inhumanity, and to say enough to exploitation to say enough to the rules that they force migrants into conditions of irregularity and blackmail.
Unfortunately, even in the province of Florence, as far as our sector, the agricultural one, is concerned, there have been cases of exploitation and gangmastering and situations which make this plague fertile still remain today.
In recent years, also in our provincial territory, in the agricultural sector, contracts with landless agricultural companies have increased (i.e. companies or cooperatives or natural persons registered as small agricultural companies, which provide procurement services to agricultural companies that have vines and crops), now in a structural way for certain processes.
Precisely in this type of contract lies the risk of gangmastering and labor exploitation.
In the area, Flai Cgil Florence officials meet workers from these landless companies, who in most cases are migrant workers.
By talking to them we learn about the complexity and difficulty of the situations in which they find themselves; from the housing one, to the renewal of residence permits, up to the few days marked on the pay slip in relation to those worked, without considering the aspect of safety at work (they work with personal clothing without being given any safety device ).
There is no shortage of bad situations bordering on exploitation and gangmastering where we are told of the abuses they have suffered with respect to their situation of necessity, but they do not move forward for fear of losing even the little that is given to them.
The Bossi-Fini law on immigration must be canceled: as long as the cornerstones of the law remain in place, including the so-called ‘flow decree’ which is proving insufficient and even harmful, too many workers will continue to be invisible, with the permission of always at risk, easy prey for gangmasters and unscrupulous entrepreneurs.
On 22 January of this year, thanks to law 199 on gangmastering, the territorial section of the Quality Agricultural Work Network was also established in Florence – at the request of the local Flai, Fai and Uila and under the aegis of the INPS; this could be a useful tool to prevent and create situations in the area that avoid areas of illegality also in the agricultural sector. What is certain is that all the actors who are part of it must believe in it and participate, otherwise the instrument is unlikely to work.
We must all work together, the union, employers’ associations, responsible bodies and local institutions to promote situations of legality and human dignity for those workers who contribute to creating and enabling agricultural production in the area.
This is also in defense of the many honest companies in the area that respect laws, contracts and the regulations on the health and safety of workers”.
