Italian port workers are called this Monday, September 28, to a national 24-hour strike called by USB Mare e Porti. The mobilization takes place throughout the day and affects companies and organizations linked to port activities in various locations across the country.
The call is registered with the official Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport of Italy, which notes the strike from 00:01 to 24:00 hours. The strike affects port companies, terminal operators, companies providing services at the docks, and port authorities.
One of the main reasons for the protest is the union's demand for port work to be recognized as an especially burdensome activity for retirement purposes. USB argues that the conditions under which much of this activity is carried out justify specific treatment.
The union refers to work performed in ship holds subjected to high temperatures, operations at docks during heat episodes, continuous shifts, and tasks carried out alongside heavy machinery and suspended loads. It also points out that a significant portion of the operational workforce is over 50 years old.
USB and Or.S.A. also maintain that the Italian government committed in May to establish a technical table to analyze this issue, but they assert that this meeting has not yet taken place. The unions demand that this process be resumed and that the specific conditions of port work be formally addressed.
The strike is already having operational consequences in some facilities. Terminal Darsena Toscana, in the Port of Livorno, previously communicated to its clients that during the day it could not guarantee the normal progression of its operations due to the strike called.
The protest also occurs at a time of debate about the future regulation of port work in Italy. The unions Filt Cgil, Fit Cisl, and Uiltrasporti have also expressed their opposition to a proposal included in the sector reform that would allow certain companies to directly hire temporary workers from employment agencies.
The unions believe that this change could reduce the weight of the current system for hiring specialized personnel for port operations. Their position is that these tasks should continue to be performed by workers with experience and specific training in the port environment.
This Monday's events thus bring together two main demands of the union movement in the sector: the recognition of the especially demanding conditions of port work for retirement purposes and the maintenance of the current model of specialized temporary hiring.
