A-Infos (en) Italy, FAI, Umanita Nova #27-26 - A fair wage for whom? (ca, de, it, pt, tr)[machine translation]

On June 24, the "fair wage" decree became law. Alongside other measures, 
the provision directly affects wage levels and-indirectly-income and the 
way collective bargaining is conducted, placing further tools in the 
hands of capitalists to manipulate the labor market to their own 
advantage. ----Once again, we are faced with a measure that reinforces 
the government's role in the authoritarian control of society, while 
simultaneously drawing the discontent of broad segments of the 
population upon that very government. At the same time, the measure 
reveals the government's true function as an instrument of the 
bourgeoisie's thirst for profit, demonstrating in practice the validity 
of the anarchist critique of the current societal model-a model based on 
the political and economic domination of a small, privileged minority.

The working class and exploited classes have nothing to expect from 
these institutions and their representatives; only their own autonomous 
and unified organization-grounded in self-organization and direct 
action-can counter the continuous deterioration of living and working 
conditions. At the same time, this organization can lay the groundwork 
for a new societal structure that transcends the regime of private 
property and abolishes all forms of government.

Furthermore, through the initial decree and its subsequent enactment 
into law, the government disrupts the hierarchy of legal sources upon 
which labor law is based. This hierarchy places the Constitution first, 
followed by ordinary laws, and then collective bargaining; notably, the 
latter cannot override the mandates established by the Constitution and 
ordinary laws. The text approved by Parliament instead establishes a 
sort of primacy for collective bargaining between the parties: all 
reference to the free and dignified life-which the Constitution 
expressly mandates be ensured by the remuneration paid for one's 
labor-has vanished. This provision is replaced by a reference to the 
overall remuneration package defined by National Collective Labor 
Agreements (CCNL) signed by the most representative employers' 
associations and trade unions at the national level.

The subordinate relationship binding the employee to the employer-a 
factor that once justified State intervention in the employment 
relationship (an intervention, admittedly, always aimed at maintaining 
that very subordination)-is now masked by the contractual relationship, 
which becomes the basis for the remuneration of those selling their labor.

This marks a return to a liberal approach-one that had already been 
superseded in rhetoric by Fascist corporatism, a shift later enshrined 
in the Republican Constitution and established as standard practice 
following the struggles of the "Hot Autumn."

The complete abandonment of workers' wages to the discretion of 
capitalists is further underscored by the choices made by the major 
confederated trade unions. With their latest proposal for a framework 
agreement on inter-confederation relations, the CGIL, CISL, and UIL have 
completely capitulated to the demands of employers and the government. 
Accepting the IPCA-NEI index as the benchmark for nominal wage increases 
amounts to abandoning the defense of purchasing power-and, by extension, 
the living standards of millions of workers and their families. As if 
these unions would ever consider redistributing income to benefit the 
most disadvantaged social groups at the expense of profits! The link 
between the trade union bureaucracy and the state apparatus is 
inevitable: their primary source of revenue is not the dues of members 
active in the workforce, but rather contributions from pensioners and 
fees for social welfare assistance services. Furthermore, the major 
representative unions are the direct heirs of the Fascist unions; from 
them, they inherited a subordination to the political establishment-a 
stance justified in various yet converging ways by union bureaucracies 
of Socialist-Communist, Catholic, and Republican leanings.

The process of establishing a Fascist regime-currently underway in 
Italy-can only benefit from the acquiescence of the CGIL, CISL, and UIL.

The well-being of the exploited classes, their material and moral 
advancement, and their emancipation lie in their own hands-in their 
ability to unite and create stable organizations under their direct 
control, independent of political parties and institutions, based on the 
principles of self-organization and direct action.

For years, the Italian Anarchist Federation has identified the embryo of 
this type of organization within rank-and-file unionism. However, these 
unions are composed of activists-some trained within bureaucratic 
unions, others influenced by agitators who favor authoritarian 
practices-and their rank-and-file members are accustomed to delegating 
authority rather than taking direct control of the organization meant to 
defend them. All of this inevitably leads to the replication of the very 
same flaws found in bureaucratic unionism within the rank-and-file movement.

Moreover, the Federation's decision to embrace rank-and-file unionism 
has not been matched by a sustained, consistent commitment to 
championing the practices of direct action and self-organization. At 
times, the Federation has even backed decisions made by the leadership 
of these unions to serve immediate political goals, without sufficiently 
fostering the development of grassroots struggle among workers. I am 
thinking, for instance, of the general strike during the Genoa G8 summit 
or certain general strikes against the war.

The Italian Anarchist Federation, however, is in a position to make a 
decisive contribution to fostering the unity, autonomy, and organization 
of the exploited classes.

Linking nominal incomes to the ISTAT price index for blue- and 
white-collar households (the FOI index); demanding the abolition of VAT 
on the goods and services included in that index; and opposing the 35 
billion euros the government intends to spend on war and energy 
multinationals-these are issues that can be championed both within 
rank-and-file unions and in broader grassroots organizing, through 
leafleting, pickets, and demonstrations. Added to this must be training 
in methods of organization and struggle aimed at developing libertarian 
trade union militants who can transform the structures of grassroots 
unions from within.

The cause of working-class emancipation, the abolition of private 
property, and social revolution stands to gain immensely from the 
struggle for immediate improvements and from the growth of the united, 
autonomous organization of the exploited classes.

The experience of the Spanish Revolution-the ninetieth anniversary of 
which falls this year-serves as a reminder: the defeat of the fascist 
coup of July 19, 1936, and the achievements of workers and peasants in 
the months that followed would not have been possible without the 
existence of an autonomous class organization and, within it, the 
organization of a conscious minority inspired by anarchist ideals. This 
lesson remains relevant today-against solipsistic wreckers and 
authoritarians, as well as against rising fascism.

Tiziano Antonelli

https://umanitanova.org/salario-giusto-per-chi/
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