16
November 2001 - Metalworkers National strike and demonstration
in Rome
A struggle for democracy and national
collective bargaining, for equal rights and workers right to decide on
their own conditions in workplace
At the end of september, a general National Assembly
of 5000 Fiom delegates, held in Verona, decided a national general strike in
metalworkers plants with a national demonstration in Rome, on the
16th of November.
This was after a successful national 8 hours strike
on the 6th of july, with local demonstrations.
Other initiatives are preparing the day of 16th
November:
on the 6th of November in Milano the Fiom
General Secretary Claudio Sabattini, together with Sergio Cofferati, CGIL
General Secretary, will explain in a press Conference the result and
reasons of collecting certified signatures among metalworkers, to obtain a
ballot on the agreement that was not signed by FIOM (only by FIM and UILM).
350.000 signatures have been collected and
certified.
On the 14th of November all the signatures
will be given to the Labour Minister, Mr.Maroni, with a public presentation.
On 16th of November, at least 100.000
metalworkers, in a day of national strike, will gather in Rome, Piazza
S. Giovanni, for a national demonstration. Delegations of workers from different
sectors will join in solidarity, as well as youth associations and students.
The demonstration, in support of national collective
bargaining and democracy in workplace, i.e. the right to decide about
collective agreements for all the workers, will take a position also
against the so called "white book" issued in the last weeks by
Governement.
This book wants the cancellation of national
collective bargaining and to differenciate wages in different regions; total
flexibility, in labour market and wages; cancellation of the method of
tripartite decisional process among social parts and governement; finally the
new law about immigration states that the permission to stay in the country for
migrant people ends with the end of job: after that, the persons will be obliged
to leave the country.
In conclusion, the national demonstration in Rome
means that metalworkers and Fiom refuse employers "diktat", want to
reobtain the table for national negociations, stand for democracy and
against any kind of imposition.