US-IUE Florence expresses solidarity with externalised services colleagues

The US-IUE Florence wishes to express its steadfast solidarity and full support for our EUI colleagues employed by external companies contracted by the EUI, who are on strike today.

Today 29 November, a general strike lasting 8 hours has been called by the labor unions CGIL and UIL to protest against the Italian government’s budget plan.

Workers across all sectors, both public and private, will participate in the strike to protest against widespread job insecurity, cuts to public spending, long waiting lists in healthcare, a freeze on turnover in the public administration, low salaries and wages eroded by inflation, and the lack of an industrial plan.

The Union has clearly expressed its position on externalised services at the EUI in a statement highlighting that outsourcing services creates unequal pay and working conditions for employees performing, in some cases, the same job.

The Union therefore calls on the EUI to draw upon the EU Directive 2022/2041 on minimum wages – as a criteria in all tenders. Ensuring that employees of external companies are treated fairly, both in terms of salary and overall working conditions, is not just a matter of justice and fairness—it is also essential for safeguarding the EUI’s reputation.