A-Infos (en) Italy, FAI, Umanita Nova #34-25 - November 28 - Schools on strike. Demonstrations continue against the war budget (ca, de, it, pt, tr)[machine translation]

The general strike of October 3rd saw widespread participation from the 
school sector, with a national participation rate of 9.05%. This average 
is difficult to achieve, given the widespread distribution of schools 
across the region and the resulting widespread fragmentation of 
workplaces. Livorno was the province with the highest participation rate 
in all of Italy, reaching 29.54%, more than triple the national average. 
This figure leaves Unicobas Scuola, the only grassroots union active in 
the sector at local level for decades, very satisfied. However, it 
should be read especially in light of the timing of the strike and the 
unique situation created by the mobilization at the port of Livorno, 
which generated an extraordinary level of participation, significantly 
channeled into the day of October 3rd.

On November 28th, we will be on strike again, certainly in a different 
way, but still with a strong connection-unfortunately still necessary-to 
the war situation. We must confront widespread poverty in which services 
and wages are severely attacked, as highlighted by the Budget Law under 
discussion. This is not only because salaried workers are constantly 
forced to endure crisis, precariousness, and job blackmail-the essence 
of exploitation-but also because we are subjected to a veritable war 
economy. The issue is certainly not new, but it has intensified in 
recent years with the multiplication of military missions abroad, the 
war in Ukraine, and the war in the Middle East. Already in the fall of 
2021, grassroots unions unitedly called a strike, one of which was to 
oppose military spending and the war. In recent years, the escalation of 
war has been accompanied by a financial commitment for which we have all 
made and are making the difference. And the already enormous increase in 
military spending (+38.5% compared to last year) envisaged in the Budget 
currently under discussion will be further increased in the first half 
of 2026 with the expenditure for the European Readiness rearmament plan 
and the interest on the related debt already planned to support it.

It is against this disastrous backdrop that the November 28 strike 
against what is effectively a wartime Budget takes place.

The schools have plenty of reasons to strike. The sectoral agreement 
signed a few weeks ago by CISL, UIL, SNALS, Gilda, and Anief actually 
covers the three-year period 2022-2024, so it has already expired a year 
ago, practically stillborn. The paltry increases will take effect in the 
first months of 2026, averaging EUR48 for teachers and EUR35 for ATA 
(administrative and technical staff), representing a paltry recovery of 
just 6% compared to inflation hovering around 18%. This paltry increase, 
in this case, is not only imposed by the wartime economy, but also by 
the infamous agreements signed by the concerted unions, which for 
several decades have kept increases below the ceiling of projected 
inflation, which is light years away from actual inflation.

If this is the ghastly reality of the contract renewal, the Budget Law 
plans just as many disasters for schools. The EUR480 million cut in 
school buildings further aggravates a situation of structural decay that 
sees one in three school buildings substandard, and PNRR funds for 
school buildings allocated solely to the creation of digital 
environments, disregarding any safety concerns. The staffing 
enhancements, assigned to schools a few years ago as a resource to 
consolidate project activities, will be used to cover short-term 
substitutes, impoverishing the educational offering and reducing the 
employment opportunities for many precarious workers. Furthermore, a cut 
of 2,000 ATA positions and 6,000 teaching positions is planned, which 
will lead to a general increase in workloads and an increase in class 
sizes, perpetuating the trend of overcrowded classes and worsening 
learning conditions for students. This situation is set to worsen with 
the advancement of the four-year secondary school curriculum, which will 
result in the loss of a year.

But on November 28th, the school is also striking against the heavy 
repressive attack it is undergoing. We know well that the 
intensification of the war is matched by an internal war that translates 
into greater social control; we know that a war economy imposes 
restrictions also through discipline. In recent years, we have seen 
these policies implemented by a far-right government that is happy to 
churn out security decrees, invent further crimes, create red zones, and 
criminalize any dissent. Schools have not been exempt from these 
processes: from the disciplinary code for teachers to the conduct grades 
for students, to the disciplinary sanctions routinely used by 
principals. This trend has intensified in recent months. At the 
beginning of the school year, the Lazio Regional School Office 
prohibited the discussion of issues related to the international war 
scenario, and specifically the Gaza genocide, during faculty meetings.

Of the three bills (Romeo, Scalfarotto, and Gasparri) that equate 
anti-Zionism with anti-Semitism, Gasparri Bill No. 1627 specifically 
targets schools by criminalizing and penalizing any critical approach to 
the policies of the State of Israel, even requiring teachers to report 
any comments or positions that suggest such behavior. On November 4, the 
Ministry blocked the recognition of a training course organized by the 
Observatory against the Militarization of Schools and Universities. 
Three days later, a ministerial note was sent to all schools, ominously 
recommending that they ensure pluralism in addressing political and 
social issues with students.

Beyond the general repressive pressure affecting society as a whole, the 
government's focus on schools is evident. This sector, along with 
universities, has responded massively to the strikes and recent 
demonstrations against war, growing militarization, and the genocide in 
Gaza. And schools are responding by taking to the streets on November 
28th, alongside other sectors, decisively positioning themselves on a 
day of general strike that presents very different characteristics from 
that of October 3rd. This is complicated by the diversionary strike 
launched by the CGIL on a different date, but above all, it presents a 
different climate, lacking the strong tension generated by the Flotilla 
affair and the particularly brutal phase of the bombing of Gaza, which 
had given October 3rd the characteristics of a political and social 
strike. On November 28th, the strike returns to a fully union-led 
stance, demanding truly improved wages and employment conditions, social 
investments, and the fight against poverty and the high cost of living. 
This is where the strike's strength in opposition to the war, 
rearmament, and the government comes into play.

Patrizia Nesti

https://umanitanova.org/28-novembre-scuola-in-sciopero-ancora-in-piazza-contro-la-finanziaria-di-guerra/
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