But for Fiom, Fim, Uilm and Ugl the meeting at Palazzo Chigi was “disastrous”: 8-hour strike by November 23rd
Summit on the former Ilva in Taranto today 9 November 2023 at Palazzo Chigi between government and unions. During the discussion, Palazzo Chigi said in a note, the unions “were updated on the issue relating to safety at work, an issue considered essential by the Executive and on which it was communicated that the company Arcelor Mittal has been warned not to lay off maintenance workers“.
Taking part in the technical-operational meeting on behalf of the Executive were the Heads of Cabinet of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers and of the competent ministries (Work and Social Policies, Enterprises and Made in Italy and European Affairs, Cohesion Policies, South and Pnrr ). Representatives of Fiom-Cgil, Fim-Cisl, Uilm-Uil, Usb and Ugl metalworkers participated for the trade union associations.
Permanent discussion table
A discussion table that will be “stable and permanent” and which, we read in a note from the executive, took place “in a frank climate and was an opportunity to update the unions on the progress that the Government is making to address the complex issues that have characterized the Taranto steel plant for decades”. “An important comparison – underlines Palazzo Chigi – which falls within the scope of the national strategy in which Italian steel returns to be the protagonist and which aims to put on paper the urgencies and commitments that must be undertaken by all parties”.
Any hypothesis of closure or liquidation of the plant is excluded
For its part, the Government, “clearly underlining the intention to continue to do its part, reiterated the commitments undertaken which provide for the absolute exclusion of the possibility of closure or liquidation of the plant as well as the suspension of activity” and guaranteed that “the objective remains that of achieving certain production levels over time”, explains Palazzo Chigi.
With regard to the Cig “it was recalled that a rule was included in the Budget Bill which can be remodulated depending on the production levels to which the company is committed, with the primary objective of maintaining the protection of workers”, we read in the Note.
Positive developments from Pnrr funds
“Besides guarantees on the safety of the factories“, continues the Presidency of the Council, “updates were also provided on the positive definition of the ongoing infringement procedure, on the discussions with the European Commission in the context of the revision of the Pnrr linked to the RePowerEu chapter and on the verification of the concrete commitment of the member private sector to relaunch the plant”. “Any necessary in-depth analysis on industrial issues has been postponed until after 23 November when the Acciaierie d’Italia shareholders’ meeting was convened”, Palazzo Chigi also states.
Unions: disastrous negotiations, 8-hour strike by 11/23
A “disastrous negotiation”, “a meeting that went badly even compared to the minimum expectations” with “worrying answers that leave a bad taste in the mouth”. Thus the leaders of Fiom Fim and Uilm, Michele De Palma, Roberto Benaglia and Rocco Palombella commented on the outcome of the new meeting at Palazzo Chigi on the dispute of the former Ilva Group and announced “8 hours of strike to be proclaimed by 23 November”, the date of the convocation of the ADI Assembly to which the government entrusts the fate of the future of the steel group.
Fiom: “Government decide which side to take”
‘Disastrous’ negotiation for Fiom. “ArcelorMittal cannot hold the workers, the related industries and Ilva in AS and the government itself hostage”, denounces the leader Michele De Palma who has no expectations from the outcome of the meeting of November 23rd to which the government has postponed in fact the entire ex Ilva match. “There is a risk, on that occasion, of watching a film we have already seen: we will not have answers either on an industrial or employment level, much less on an environmental one, but we will continue to talk only about layoffs which to date is the only something that Arcelor Mittal is pushing for,” he explains. And he reiterates the union’s request: “We we want to open a real negotiation which does not exist today. We ask for a position from the government which must decide whether it is with the workers or is with a multinational which to date has not guaranteed production, has only made redundancy payments and has put the steel industry, the environment and safety at risk. of workers”, he lists before denouncing the other emergencythe one on job security.
Fim: “It’s wrong that the private shareholder doesn’t contribute a euro”
Also for the Film today’s meeting did not resolve the questions “on the crisis situation that the former Ilva group is experiencing” despite the reassurance from the government that there will be “neither bankruptcy nor closure of the steel group”, explains the general secretary of the CISL blue suits, Roberto Benaglia. And if the executive has also guaranteed the unions on the commitment to greater safety of the plants, it remains unclear “where a negotiation with the private partner for the relaunch plan is going. On the 23rd there is a meeting which is called to make an initial recapitalization but we want to discuss instead the 5 billion that are needed to relaunch the entire group”, he explains, defining “wrong, unprecedented, unjust and unsustainable that the State, as today’s newspapers report, puts 2.3 billion renegotiating with Europe the possibility of moving the European resources of the various projects for the decarbonisation of Taranto, and the private partner does not put anything into it”.
An agreement, adds Benaglia, “which would be very dangerous”. And since the executive has not “made course corrections, there is currently insufficient negotiation”, he concludes by starting by saying that the unions “are willing to discuss seriously with all the private individuals that the government wants, but provided that there are serious plans. Today, however, we are absolutely at a standstill.”
Uilm: “Worrying answers”
“It was a meeting that went badly even compared to the minimum expectations even though we didn’t have high ones. But it went terribly because we received responses that were so worrying that they obviously left us with a bad taste in our mouths. The government in fact subordinates all the strategies to save the state steel mills at a meeting of the shareholders’ assembly on November 23. From what will happen on that date it will be possible to understand whether the private shareholder will continue to remain in our country or not”, comments the embittered leader UilmRocco Palombella leaving the meeting and announcing the next proclamation of the 8-hour strike for the entire group to be held by November 23rd.
And he explains: “On that occasion, a recapitalization of the company will be requested, the sum of which should be around 380 million and it will be understood whether the private shareholder will be willing to invest again in Italy or not. So, the whole story linked to the memorandum, to a secret three-way agreement… there’s nothing left, it’s just waste paper”. In fact, he reiterates, it will only be during the meeting that the government will be able to “verify the shareholder’s orientation”.
This delay in time is unacceptable for Uilm: “and we have to wait until the 23rd to find out what this possible recapitalization, which will also have to be supported in part by the State, is based on, what industrial plan and what investments will have to be based on? “.
Uglm: “No news on the industrial plan”
Strike of the entire group inevitable also for theUglm. “We must and can only register the postponement of the problems until November 23rd, when the members’ assembly will meet”, says the national secretary Antonio Spera, at the end of the meeting. “Nothing has been communicated to us on the change in governance, on the investment plan or even on the indiscretions, leaked through the media, of a possible agreement between Mittal and the government with a view to an injection of economic capital with the aim, from part of the government, to find, once again, a partnership with a private partner”, he adds.
“In today’s meeting, however, there was a lack of concreteness, in an extremely unstable and dangerous context which seriously risks compromising the protection of the factory, plants and jobs”, he concludes.
Source-www.adnkronos.com