Italian court of appeal orders reinstatement of striking workers

5 workers were dismissed 'for just cause' notified on 24 March 2022, 'for having worked a different shift from the one ordered' by the employer 'after two conservative sanctions had already been imposed for the same conduct'. The workers, with support from CGIL, challenged the measure before the Court of Naples North, claiming that, with a union agreement of 22 December 2018 with Unilever Italia Manufacturing srl - the company in which the five worked, later taken over by Catone Trasporti srl - it had been established that, as an exception to the provisions of the national collective agreement for the category, working hours would be distributed over 21 shifts, with a cycle lasting nine weeks with payment of an indemnity.

Despite the expiry of the agreement on 31 December 2021, the national contract for the food industry, signed on 31 July 2020, provided for the extension of all second-level contracts still in force, so that the previously signed agreement would still remain valid. However, despite the extension, Catone Transport has repeatedly changed shifts since the beginning of 2022 without recognising the contractually agreed compensation. Hence the protest of the workers and Flai CGIL, which then led to the dismissal, revoked by this ruling which, defining it as 'illegitimate', ordered the reinstatement of the five workers in the same jobs, condemning the company to pay twelve months' salary each, as compensation.

For more information (in Italian) please see the website of Flai CGIL here.