Electricity, Union Rights, Italy

(September 2016) The CGIL confederation and its public service federation (Fp-Cgil) are working together to coordinate legal and industrial action in support of forestry workers who are facing transfer to the carabinieri police force. The transfer would mean major changes for the workers who would lose the right to strike. The confederation and federation are planning to organise strike action in protest but in the mean time are planning to support action by individual workers to challenge the legality of the new statute to implement the transfer. Read more at Fp-Cgil (IT).

(September 2016) Trade unions have negotiated a minimum service provision in the case of strike action by forestry workers. This is an important step to maintain the current rights of this group of workers that is facing militarisation and the loss of the right to strike through transfer to the carabineri police service. Trade unions are continuing to fight this transfer both through union campaigning and legal action.

(January 2017) In December forestry workers took to the streets demanding a delay in their forced transfer to the carabinieri police force. The transfer will deny them the right to strike. The government has not only gone ahead and abolished the state forestry service but has failed to respond to formal requests by hundreds of workers to be transferred to other parts of the public administration. The FP CGIL trade union is continuing to defend the workers through campaigning and legal action.

The three main trade unions representing workers in ministries and agencies - FP-CGIL, CISL-FP and UIL-PA - have welcomed the new agreement signed on 23 December that marks the end of almost nine years of a freeze on collective bargaining. Covering around 250000 employees, the agreement re-establishes the importance of the role of the trade unions and collective bargaining and implements the basic pay provisions set out in the public sector framework deal agreed at the end of 2016. The central government agreement has a wide range of provisions on leave, including extra leave for women who are

Firefighters' unions in Spain and Italy are calling for government action to address a number of longstanding issues. In Italy the FP-CGIL trade union has declared a state of agitation around a number of key demands related to the collective agreement, recruitment, occupational safety, pensions and the right to elect workplace representatives. The union wants to see action to reduce bureaucracy and increase investment. Meanwhile, in Spain the unions want a framework law to establish a clear national structure for the service which is characterised by significant differences across the regions

The four main public service unions - FP-CGIL, CISL-FP, UIL-PA and UIL-FPL - have together launched a major campaign and petition calling for action to improve public services and deliver better employment conditions. The four unions have drawn up a document with 11 key proposals that cover calls for increased public investment; substantial recruitment of new workers and improved training provision; better union representation; finalising outstanding collective agreements for the 2016-2018 period and ensuring resources for the next round of agreements for 2019-21; bringing back privatised

Trade unions representing workers in the electricity, gas and water sectors organised a day of strike action on 17 December. The unions are concerned that changes to procurement rules will lead to more outsourcing and so threaten jobs, pay and conditions and the quality of services. Meanwhile, unions organising in the private health sector began a series of regional actions with a strike in Lazio on 14 December as part of a campaign to secure a new sector agreement covering 150000 workers. It is 12 years since the last agreement was negotiated.

The three unions in the electricity sector - Filctem-Cgil, Flaei-Cisl and Uiltec-Uil - have signed a new three-year agreement covering 50000 employees. Workers will see a EUR 104 increase in pay, paid in three instalments, topped up with EUR 15 as a productivity bonus and EUR 5 related to welfare benefits. There will also be a EUR 100 lump sum paid this year. The agreement includes initiatives to improve health and safety, to ensure contractors are covered by the agreement along with several other measures benefiting working parents and women workers.

Four energy trade union in France organised another day of action on 17 December in protest at what they see as major threats to the sector, such as the “Hercule” restructuring plans at EDF, and its public service mission. FNME-CGT, CFE-CGC Énergies, FO Énergie et Mines and FCE-CFDT are concerned that key decisions about the sector are being taken without proper consultation both with the unions and in parliament. Meanwhile, the Filctem-Cgil, Flaei-Cisl and Uiltec energy unions in Italy achieved a significant victory in the ENEL company following a campaign of industrial action. The unions

Trade unions in the electricity and waste sectors reported very high levels of support for their industrial action and protests on 30 June. The unions want article 177 of the procurement code to be deleted as they argue that it requires widespread outsourcing across their sectors, posing a major threat to jobs and working conditions. They say that if the article is not deleted there will be increasing fragmentation of these industries and it will undermine initiatives towards a circular economy and low carbon energy sector. Meanwhile, the three main confederations have also been mobilising to