In the Noon 1.2 million live poor workersa figure that corresponds to approximately half of the national total. The data emerges from a document presented in recent hours by CGIL during the national assembly entitled “One and indivisible. Italy starts again from the South”. The union’s initiative aims to put development and social justice in the southern regions back at the center of public debate and political action.
The wage gap
According to the analysis of the union led by Maurizio Landinihaving a job is no longer enough to guarantee a dignified existence in the southern regions. This phenomenon is caused by a lower average number of paid days per year compared to the rest of the country and by a strong spread of low-paid economic activities. As a result, the wage gap between different areas of Italy continues to increase.
Contractual precariousness
Another determining factor for the spread of working poverty is the high incidence of non-standard contracts. In fact, in the South there is a high concentration of fixed-term contracts, part-time contracts and discontinuous employment. The document highlights how irregularity and precariousness affect these areas most intensely, reducing opportunities especially for young people and women.
The emergency of depopulation
The difficulties of the labor market fuel population loss and youth emigration, and more. The CGIL defines the depopulation of the South as “a true national emergency”. The phenomenon not only has demographic implications, but produces a progressive weakening of public services, democratic institutions and social cohesion, compromising “the productive prospects of the territory”.
The objectives of the union
The CGIL document identifies quality work and sustainable development as the tools necessary to reverse the current trend. The union calls for the southern issue to no longer be considered a local problem, but “a major national issue”. The declared objective is the activation of political and trade union interventions capable of counteracting the contradictions of the Italian development model.