New agreement signed for 120,000 local transport workers

Download article in original language : IT9708125NIT.DOC

Following 19 months of negotiations, a new industry-wide agreement for Italy's 120,000 local transport workers was signed by the main trade unions and the Government in July 1997.

The dispute over the renewal of the industry-wide agreement for local public transport, which expired 19 months ago, has now been settled. A long session of talks, which carried on into the early hours of the morning of 25 July 1997, saw the transport minister, Claudio Burlando, and officials of some large cities (almost all of the companies belong to local authorities) sign the agreement. Consequently, the general strike, previously announced for the same day by the three main transport workers' unions, Filt-Cgil, Fit-Cisl and Uiltrasporti, was called off.

The new contract covers 120,000 workers in both direct transport and maintenance or administrative duties. The economic part of the contract will last for two years and the non-pay terms and conditions part for four years. The average monthly wage increase for the first two-year period will be ITL 200,000.

The provisions of the agreement are highly innovative and relate to four aspects of the employer-employee relationship:

1. pension fund- a fund will be set up for supplementary occupational pensions (IT9705205F). Membership of the fund is voluntary. The monthly contribution will be ITL 25,000 per worker, matched by an equal contribution from the employer;

2. flexibility in working hours- companies will be able to negotiate with the trade unions at company level different working hours in relation to particular service needs;

3. wage flexibility- a financial bonus will be established at company level, which will link wages to productivity;

4. flexibility in hiring- companies can recruit new personnel with a job classification and wage lower than to that fixed by previous agreements.

The sector's trade union representatives were satisfied by the outcome of the negotiations and have underlined: the innovative nature of the contract (Guido Abbadessa, the general secretary of Filt-Cgil); its usefulness with regard to company restructuring processes (Giuseppe Surrenti, Fit-Cisl); and the contribution which the new flexibility can make to companies in negotiating the crisis period which is presently affecting all local transport companies (Sandro Degni, general secretary of Uiltrasporti).