Naples – Yet another wall of bureaucracy has halted the process of securing permanent employment for 12 forestry workers hired on fixed-term contracts by the Metropolitan City of Naples. Today, Monday, December 29th, was the deadline for them to exceed the 180-day work threshold, a prerequisite for permanent employment. Instead, after 16 years of precarious employment, their futures are back in limbo.
The Naples-based trade unions Flai-Cgil, Fai-Cisl, and Uila-Uil have raised the alarm in a harsh joint statement. Secretaries Francesco Fattoruso, Fabio Giuliani, and Melania Sannino call what has happened in recent weeks "surreal." The 12 workers had been promised a parallel path to that followed for their colleagues in the Province of Benevento, whose 1200 contracts were smoothly stabilized by the Campania Region.
The last minute block
The breaking point came on Thursday, December 18th, the day that should have marked the successful conclusion of the process. Despite the favorable opinion of the Metropolitan City's General Accounting Office, the authority's secretary general rejected the proposed resolution for the stabilization. Instead, he proposed alternatives that the unions called "cobbled together and questionable," such as issuing a new hiring announcement.
This decision, the unions accuse, ignores both the forecasts of the Regional Partnership Committee and the fact that these same 12 workers had already been hired in the past through regular public procedures. Further complicating matters on the 18th was the sick absence of the relevant manager, who was unable to replace them for the actual signing of the contracts.
The union statement doesn't spare any jabs at "misleading statements from pseudo-unions that have never been seen alongside workers' struggles, good only for sporadic statements." With "great bitterness," Flai, Fai, and Uila note that the battle for these last 12 workers "still has to be fought."
The goal now is an urgent meeting with the new regional councilor for the Environment and the next head of the Metropolitan City, once appointed. The objective is to chart "a new course for 2026 that is clear from the outset," to achieve "stable and non-misleading solutions." "These workers and their families," they conclude, "have the right to respect and dignity." A dignity that, for now, has remained mired in an office.
Source EDITORIAL TEAM
Comments (2)
It's incredible how bureaucracy can block people's futures. These workers deserve stability and security after all this time; it's time to make the right decisions for them.
The situation of these workers is truly sad. After 16 years of precarious employment, it's unfair that they still find themselves in limbo. I hope things can change soon for them and their families.