FLMUniti: succuss of the countrywide strike at the Telecom call centers

text in german
(FLMU-CUB press release on the strike, 15.10.01)
The first countrywide strike at the Telecom call centers was well received. It is difficult to give exact numbers on that because the Telecom call centers are devided in small units accross all provinces. According to the information of the base union the participation was good. In Florence for instance in reached about 50 percent. In other cities like Milano, Bologna and Rome the participation was also substantial. Altogether it was higher in the 187, the most important call center with about 8000 workers.

The countrywide strike at the Telecom call centers affected a total of 18.000 workers in the departments 12, 182, 183, 187, 189 Data.com/Rete, 191, CRU, CNA-Data.com and CN-ATI, in the front-end and back-offices, for the whole work shift.

The base union FLMU-CUB expresses its satisfaction with the success of the protest, which exceeded the expectations, despite the pressure of the company on the workers and in some cases the boycott of the official unions. In this context we denounce a serious case of the limitation of the freedom to strike that happened in Terni: some workers who are enrolled in the CGIL and who had the intention to take part in the strike were called by a unionist of the CGIL and asked not to go on strike. He declared that the possible absence would be unjustified because - in his view - the strike did not affect Umbria.

On the occasion of the strike the base union FLMU-CUB has also organised a PUBLIC DEBATE "Call centers: new work, old exploitation. How do the workers defend themselves" with the workers of call centers and information services [organi d'informazione]: at 5:30 pm at the office of the CUB, Via Nazionale 57, Florence.

The strike was announced in order to get more "human" working conditions and to step up against the new working hours and the new organisation of work that currently is being introduced by Telecom:
- Against precarisation and flexibilisation
- Against the new working hours and the organisation "modell call center"
- Against the re-location and out-sourcing of work and workers
- The jobs have to remain on the local level
- For more human conditions of work and the ability to swap shifts
- For the compliance with the health- and security-norms

Concerning these points the dispute at the Telecom call centers will continue. Decisions on other initiatives will be made in the next few days.

Federazione Lavoratori Metalmeccanici Uniti - Confederazione Unitaria di Base
Firenze, Via Nazionale 57. Tel./fax 055/494858. email: flmufi@dada.it


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