In Italy, teachers and transport workers staged a nationwide strike Oct. 17 to protest the proposed reforms of Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s government. Protests drawing hundreds of thousands of workers and students were held the same day in Rome, Milan and Turin.
The government plans to cut 87,000 teacher’s jobs, slash pay and lower workplace standards in transport and health care industries.
The union-organized action drew wide public support. One source indicated that as many as 500,000 protesters participated in Rome, and the Italian news agency ANSA reported that nearly 50,000 demonstrators gathered at Milan’s Piazzo Duomo. The actions successfully shut down schools, trains, buses and ferries, causing major traffic delays.
When asked about the strike, one worker attempting to get to her job replied: “I think these reforms are wrong and it’s time to fight back. The strike is just the first step.”
This is the first major strike since Berlusconi took office earlier this year.
