Cisl holds organisational assembly

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In November 2003, Italy's Cisl trade union confederation held its 'organisational and programmatic assembly' in Rome. The key issues debated included future unity of action with the other two main union confederations (Cgil and Uil) and responses to the government's controversial proposals on pensions reform.

The Italian Confederation of Workers’ Unions (Confederazione Italiana Sindacati dei Lavoratori, Cisl) held an 'organisational and programmatic assembly' in Rome on 20-22 November 2003. Such assemblies usually take place between national congresses (the most recent congress was held in 2001 - IT0107191N) and provide an occasion to assess the activities of the confederation and to adapt its programme for the two years before the next congress. Cisl's regional, local and sectoral organisations held more than 2,700 meetings, involving about 270,000 union delegates, in order to prepare for the 2003 assembly.

At present, Cisl is going through a very delicate phase, especially as regards its relations with the other two main union confederations - the General Confederation of Italian Workers (Confederazione Generale Italiana del Lavoro, Cgil) and the Union of Italian Workers (Unione Italiana del Lavoro, Uil) - and with the centre-right government.

Until recently there were some points of agreement between Cisl and the government, which allowed for the signature of the Pact for Italy - an agreement on the labour market, the tax system and the South of Italy concluded by the government, employers' organisations and trade unions (except Cgil) in July 2002 (IT0207104F) - and saw a number of breakdowns in trade union unity, with Cgil strongly opposing government policies and Cisl and Uil open to dialogue (IT0303101N). During recent months, however, Cisl has voiced many criticisms of the government, in particular due to the alleged non-fulfilment of the commitments in the Pact for Italy. A major rupture occurred when the government presented a proposal for the reform of the pension system in September 2003 (IT0309203F). Cisl, together with the other trade union confederations, has heavily criticised both the contents of the proposal and the procedure adopted in drawing it up, which was seen as lacking dialogue and consultation.

Debate

The November 2003 assembly brought together 1,250 delegates and 250 members of Cisl’s general council. In his introductory speech, Sergio Betti, the Cisl confederal secretary for organisation, highlighted the main items on the agendas of the preceding sectoral and local debates. In particular, he underlined the need to promote more effective union organisation, especially among those workers who have historically been 'weaker' from a trade union point of view - those in small and medium-sized companies, young people, women, migrants etc. Cisl will thus create a 'proselytising network' to assist local organisation efforts.

During the assembly, many criticisms were voiced of the government's actions. The government's economic policy (IT0311102N and IT0310102N) was heavily criticised on both the economic and ethical level, in particular as regards policy on tax amnesties, with delegates claiming that 'instead of fighting the tax evasion it ended up justifying it'. A negative view was taken of the government's international and social policies, but above all Cisl was very critical about the reform of the pensions system and proposed a counter-reform.

Cisl is calling for a resumption of 'social concertation' in order to allow for greater social cohesion in carrying out all actions aimed at modernising social policies and at implementing the Pact for Italy and the 'Pact for competitiveness, employment and development' signed in June 2003 by all three trade union confederations and the Confindustria employers' confederation, with the aim of relaunching the country’s economy and production (IT0307105F).

With regard to organisational issues, the Cisl leadership proposed extending the maximum term of office of members of the confederal secretariat. This proposal was based on an agreement between the Cisl general secretary, Savino Pezzotta, whose term of office will expire in 2009 according to the rules currently in force, and the other members of the confederal secretariat, whose terms of office are due to expire two years earlier. The extension aims to allow the current leadership group to manage the succession of Mr Pezzotta, after 2007, without problems.

External contributions

Representatives of the government, employers and other trade union organisations participated in the Cisl assembly. The minister of finance, Giulio Tremonti, insisted on the necessity of the reforms presented by the government and on the relaunch of the country’s competitiveness, not least because it is confronted with economies, such as that of China, with no regulations and restrictions.

Antonio D’Amato, the president of Confindustria, insisted that Italy is 'trapped' between two competitive forces: 'on one side the USA which has put in place a Keynesian public support manoeuvre, reducing taxes on companies which need a feeble dollar, and on the other the emerging countries which are operating veritable social and environmental dumping'. According to Mr D’Amato, the coming enlargement of the EU could allow Italy to play a new and fundamental role, not least thanks to its geographical position in the Mediterranean. Italy is, he said, at the centre of an interesting area of exchange for those looking to the new eastern European markets and the Balkans in particular.

The speeches of Guglielmo Epifani and Luigi Angeletti, the general secretaries of Cgil and Uil respectively, focused in particular on the possibility of a new unity of trade union action. The leaderships of the confederations are looking for common ground, while taking into account trade union pluralism and the main differences among them, in particular between Cisl and Cgil, as regards union representation and the validation of collective agreements (IT0309304T). Mr Epifani insisted on overcoming difficulties not through 'voluntaristic' actions but through concrete choices, facing challenges day by day and accepting differences. Mr Angeletti stated that trade union unity should be based on concrete proposals on the main social issues.

General secretary's conclusions

The final speech of the Cisl general secretary touched on many issues, including politics, the economy and industrial relations. Mr Pezzotta called the current Italian government adequate and characterised by a political and cultural heterogeneity which makes it unable to face Italy's present problems. A similar heterogeneity, according to Mr Pezzotta, also characterises the political opposition which has neither a programme nor a shared leadership.

According to Mr Pezzotta, the government has presented: a constitutional reform with centralising tendencies (IT0212107F); an incomplete reform of the labour market with no 'social shock absorbers' to cushion the effects of restructuring; a state budget law which does not tackle the problems of Southern Italy, innovation and research; and a wrong-headed reform of the pension system. It is also presiding over an economic situation characterised by continuous increases in prices (IT0310206F). In order to deal with this critical situation, the Cisl assembly approved a programme which seeks joint mobilisation against the economic policy decisions of the government and proposes a counter-reform of the pension system.

Mr Pezzotta announced the joint production with Cgil and Uil of a proposal on the reform of the pension system, intended as an alternative to the government's plans. The main points of the proposal relate to: a reduction in labour costs through the harmonisation of the contributions to compulsory pension schemes made by various groups (employees, crafts workers, farmers etc); a strengthening of the pension funds; and a division between social assistance and social security.

As regards trade union unity, Mr Pezzotta pointed out the main strategic differences among the confederations but also underlined that it is possible to work through some of these differences through precise and clear proposals and to follow paths which are respectful of the differences. According to Mr Pezzotta 'the autonomy of the trade unions and the valorisation of pluralism are and will remain two fundamental element of every unitary path'.

Organisational decentralisation, economic democracy and a higher presence of women among Cisl's leading bodies were highlighted by Mr Pezzotta as the confederation's main organisational priorities.

Commentary

Cisl, once again, is acting as a main protagonist in Italy's political and social situation. During its November 2003 assembly the confederation set a number of very ambitious goals. Despite disagreement voiced by many sectoral organisations affiliated to Cgil, Cisl decided to seek a resumption of unity of action among the three main union confederations. The speeches of the Cisl, Cgil and Uil general secretaries underlined a common will to resume unitary relations, starting from the most importany social issues. According to Mr Pezzotta, united initiatives could be resumed initially on welfare issues and the reform of the pension system, an important social and political issue on which the unions are almost obliged to take a united position. This objective will not be easy to achieve because the confederations have expressed diverging opinions on the subject in the past.

The three confederations agree on the need for a flexible pension system based on the award of a full pension after 35 years of social security contributions, but have different views on the government's proposal to increase the retirement age from 60 to 65 and raise the number of years' contributions required for entitlement to a seniority pension. In the past, Cgil has come out in favour of an extension of the contribution-based method for calculating pensions, which would allow important savings in pension expenditure. Cisl, by contrast, wants to safeguard the value of pensions and believes that the pension expenditure could be reduced while maintaining high pensions benefits by increasing the pensionable age through voluntary incentives, such as increasing the benefits received in respect of pension contributions made after the 35th year of contributions.

Although these technical aspects are very important, the political aspect of the pensions issue is vital, and in particular the relations between the trade unions and the government. Even if the three union confederations make joint proposals it does not mean that all of them are equally keen to sign an agreement with the current centre-right government - highlighting the second challenge mentioned by Mr Pezzotta during the Cisl assembly. Relations between the government and the unions, even with Cisl and Uil which signed the 2002 Pact for Italy, are very strained. It is not fully clear whether the government is really interested, even in view of forthcoming elections, in signing an agreement with the trade unions. It is also not clear whether Cgil would sign an agreement on pensions, given its increasing politicisation and its involvement in centre-left politics, as this might contribute to a political success for the government.

The challenges Cisl plans to face - the resumption of unitary relations with the other union confederations and of concertation with the government - have a high risk attached. If the results of its initiatives prove positive, it would be an extraordinary success for Cisl and its general secretary. However, if the union confederations do not reach a unitary agreement among themselves and with the government it would create a very difficult situation for Cisl, which would have to choose between solidarity with the other two confederations or a possible unilateral agreement with the government aimed at preventing an unsuitable pension reform, and thus at protecting workers. There is also the risk of causing a severe rupture in the union movement such as that which occurred over the Pact for Italy, which would have with serious consequences for relations between the trade union confederations. (Domenico Paparella and Vilma Rinolfi, Cesos)