Thousands of Italians participated in a general strike today, Friday, to protest poor wages and declining purchasing power, although its impact on transportation was limited.
The strike – called by two trade union federations – lasted 8 hours in all sectors except transportation, after the far-right Minister of Transport, Matteo Salvini, ordered its duration to be reduced to 4 hours.
The left-wing General Confederation of Labor, the country’s main union, and the centrist Italian Workers’ Union called for a strike in protest against the draft 2025 budget presented by the far-right government of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, describing it as “completely inappropriate for solving the country’s problems.”
In a statement, the Italian Workers’ Union requested “increasing the purchasing power of employees and retirees, as well as financing health, education, public services and industry.”
This comes at a time when Italy, like France, is under severe criticism from the European Union due to its large budget deficit.
Rome is facing intense pressure to reduce its huge public debt, which amounts to nearly 3 trillion euros ($3.2 trillion).
Meloni’s government pledged to reduce the public deficit to 2.8% of GDP by 2026, which is less than the 3% ceiling set by the European Union.
Achieving the difficult goal requires reducing tax cuts and reducing the budgets of many ministries and public services.
The centrist Italian Confederation of Trade Unions, the second largest union in Italy, did not participate in the strike.
Yesterday, Thursday, Union President Luigi Spara described the strike as a “futile, populist, demagogic protest” at a time when the formulation of the draft budget had not been completed.
The strike disrupted many private and public sectors, including education, industry, health care, postal services, and courts.
The limited strike on public bus, metro and tram services lasted only 4 hours, starting at 9 am.
The Italian national airline also canceled 109 flights on Friday, including 18 international flights, while Ryanair canceled “a limited number of flights.”
In addition to Rome, thousands of people demonstrated in Milan, Naples, Bologna, Palermo and Turin.
Train transport was not affected, as railway workers went on strike over the weekend, and Italian law prevents them from striking again for at least 12 days.
