Italy: the general strike organized by the Fiom didn’t block negotiations for the renewal of metalworkers’ CCN

In a speech given during the demonstration organized in Milan on October 9, concluding the strike aimed at “defending the national collective agreement and democracy and against layoffs and factory shutdowns,” Fiom leader Gianni Rinaldini repeated his proposition to the Federmeccanica, Fim and Uilm (see our dispatch No. 090845) to “suspend negotiations and hold a referendum for workers on the two platforms.” Indeed, the employers’ federation is currently negotiating with the Fim and Uilm on the basis of their joint platform, leaving the Fiom’s claims behind (see our dispatch No. 090831). The Fiom declared that 250,000 people took part in the five interregional demonstrations organized in Milan, Florence, Rome, Naples and Palermo. The union sees it as a “remarkable” success, especially since nearly 2,000 businesses are affected by Cassa Integrazione (for a total of 98,000 employees) and that average attendance in working businesses came close to 70%.