A new public transport strike is looming on the horizon, and this time the ones who will suffer the consequences will be mainly commuters, passengers and tourists in the Italian capital. The trade unions Usb lavoro Privato and Orsa have announced a 24-hour interruption of the Atac service for tomorrow, Monday 28 October. This stoppage will involve buses, trolleybuses, subways, trams and the Termini-Centocelle tramway.
During the strike, services will only be available during certain time slots: from the start of service until 8:29 a.m. and from 5:00 p.m. to 7:59 p.m., as communicated by Atac. The two unions declared that “it is time to put an end to unsustainable workloads; we want greater safety for staff, fair salary policies and adequate benefits. It is essential to guarantee the health of staff through interventions on public transport, work environments and subway tunnels”. This strike is just a preview of what will happen on November 8.
For that date, the unions Filt Cgil, Fit Cisl, Uiltrasporti, Faisa Cisal and Ugl Fna have called a 24-hour national strike in the local public transport sector without guaranteed bands. The aim is to request the renewal of the contract that expired ten months ago. In preparation for this mobilization on November 8, the same union organizations have scheduled a press conference for Tuesday, October 29, in which they will present the reasons and methods of the protest action. They will also express concerns about the current economic maneuver.
Eugenio Stanziale, national secretary of Filt Cgil, stated that “we are very concerned about the total absence of an increase in the national fund for local public transport” in the measures provided for by the financial law. He highlighted how “not allocating additional resources in such a delicate phase for the contract renewal demonstrates the guilty will of the current government not to guarantee citizens an adequate service”.
Even the trade associations of the sector such as Agens, Anav and Asstra consider the figure of 120 million euros foreseen in the maneuver for the year 2025 alone to be insufficient. These entities affirm that “the allocation of the National Transport Fund has undergone a realistic decrease of approximately 800 million euros per year due to the high inflation of recent years”, in addition to the losses in revenues deriving from passenger traffic. Therefore, they ask that during the parliamentary approval a significant increase in the allocation for local public transport be made so that it is made stable over time.
The frustrations accumulated among workers in the sector are palpable and highlight the urgent need to address these crucial issues related to public transport in the Italian capital. The mobilization of the unions aims not only to improve the working conditions of the operators but also to guarantee a more efficient and adequate service for all users of public transport in Rome.
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