Towards the abstention from work on the Italian Stock Exchange: two hours stop on June 27th. On July 3rd table at the ministry convened by the Minister of Enterprise who demands clarification from the trade unions
The strike at the Italian Stock Exchange has attracted the attention of the government, with the Minister of Business and Made in Italy who registered the dossier. The unprecedented protest in Piazza Affari is already a coincidence, which is why Adolfo Urso convened the company unions in Rome on 3 July. A few days before, on June 27, the employees of the Stock Exchange and the other three Italian companies of the Euronext group will cross their arms.
It is for the first time in the history of the company. At the same time as the formal establishment of the ministerial table, Urso, who did well to take matters into his own hands, criticized the actions of the former Minister of Economy, Roberto Gualtieri, now mayor of Rome, who between the end of 2020 and the beginning of 2021, had managed the acquisition of Borsa Italiana by the French group Euronext. Which is the heart of the protest by the unions, who complain about contractual breaches and the danger of relocations. «When that operation was proposed – said Urso – Copasir took care of it and summoned the Minister of Economy at the time who did not justify it to the Committee, at least from what is in the official documents, because he had preferred sell Italian stock exchange to the French cousins, in the face of a more advantageous offer on the industrial level from Germany and in the face of an option regarding Switzerland which seemed better for guaranteeing the growth of the Italian Stock Exchange. Its autonomy and its development. Copasir dealt with this extensively, raising alarms to Parliament and the Government of the time.”
THE Fabi, First Cisl and Fisac Cgil unions they report concerns about the stability of employment in the national territory and the protection of professionalism in Italy. Furthermore, they contest the company’s choice not to pay the salary increases provided for by the national credit contract through ad personam post absorption. The third point is the complaint linked to the organization of work which requires, according to the unions, a now structural use of overtime even on weekends and at night. Finally, governance is in the spotlight: «Given the national importance of the market infrastructure, as a driving force for the economic growth and financial stability of our country, we note a progressive transfer outside of Italy of the strategic direction of the group, and a shift of top roles to other geographical areas of Euronext”, note the unions. That’s exactly the point. Euronext has a federative formula for the management of the different entities that make up the group. As regards stock markets only, Euronext includes, in addition to Milan, the stock exchanges of Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels, Lisbon, Dublin and Oslo. A detailed geographical map which, in the opinion of the unions, sees Italy increasingly in a minority position, almost marginalized. According to the minister, the mess arose a long time ago and, now, says Urso, the unions will have to explain «why they decided to call a strike, which has never happened, and to understand if there are tools to guarantee the autonomy and development of the stock exchange Italian, necessary for the growth of Italian businesses.”
Before the interest of the head of the Ministry of Business, it was the general secretary of Fisac CGIL, Susy Esposito, who appealed to the government, without rightly involving the individual parties: «As a country we cannot allow ourselves to have decision-making autonomy undermined and strategy of the Italian companies of the Borsa Italiana Group. For these reasons we maintain that an institutional intervention is urgent, from Parliament to the Government, given the general scope of the dispute” observed the trade unionist, according to whom “as a country we cannot afford that a reality like that of Gruppo Borsa Italiana, due to the role and function that it holds for the economy, for the stability of the markets, as well as of our debt, is effectively canceled by Euronext through corporate operations outside national borders”.
The general secretary of Fabi, Lando Maria Sileoni, remaining prudently anchored to the solution of contractual breaches, explained the underlying reasons for the initiative: «It is a company union dispute to protect those who work in the Italian Stock Exchange which must not be exploited politically. The trade union organizations of the Borsa group have taken a historic and extremely strong decision, in terms of trade union relations, but necessary and in any case taken in the exclusive interest of workers. Any other interpretation of this initiative runs the risk of jeopardizing its success and, consequently, of damaging those who work in the various companies of the group”. So far everything is normal, we are within the scope of ordinary union considerations.
The one, however, who seems to have gone the hardest, raising doubts, is Riccardo Colombani. The secretary of the First CISL pointed the finger at Euronext, arguing that its plan would be “in stark contrast to the European projects for a single capital market” which is “fundamental to guarantee Europe its rightful place among the economies world”. Why, according to the CISL trade unionist, has Italy lost its centrality with respect to the European market?
While waiting for Colombani’s clarifications, all eyes are on June 27th. Those two hours of abstention from work – which will be followed by another 16 mini-protests, in all four Italian companies Euronext (Stock Exchange, Cassa Compensazione e Garanzia, Monte Titili and Mercato Government Securities), until mid-July – not only do they represent an absolute novelty on Piazza Affari, but they will have inevitable consequences on trading and negotiations of listed securities. The company, which hopes to resume dialogue with the unions, has not yet communicated how it intends to manage the operations of the Italian price list. Urso was clear: he will ask the unions what tools concretely exist to guarantee the autonomy of the Italian Stock Exchange.
#Historic #strike #Piazza #Affari #Urso #calls #unions