Milan, Italy, 9th September 2009
Journalist: What's happening today here, in front of the Hilton Hotel in Milan?
Teresa (Room Attendant): We are starting our strike, which will last at least for three days in a row. That's because the company has started the dismissal proceedings towards the housekeeping and the maintenance departments. That adds up to 33 people and we claim this is unjustified, as the company wants to outsource these two departments in order to cut down on expenses. This is the explanation the company gave us. The proceedings started at the beginning of April, now its September and we still know nothing. The majority of us are workers with open-ended contracts, who have been working here for 25 30 years and often are only 5 6 years away from the retirement pension.
Journalist: Does the company urgently need to cut down expenses, does it face an emergency?
Maria (Room Attendant): That's what they tell us, but we keep on working as usual. The company has always had its ups and downs. I've been here for 25 years and its true you have some months of poor business, but they are always the same. In recent years I haven't seen any overall decline. They told us they dropped the prices because of the downturn, and to save on expenses they decided to cut the staff.
Fabrizio (Engineering dept): They told us about this crisis and gave us explanatory figures we cant really verify. Clearly, as in this case they dont need to provide any account books, they took undue advantage of this.
Journalist: What are the tasks of the workers they want to lay off?
Ruth (Room Attendant): We are chambermaids, porters and maintenance workers. As to say, we are the soul of this hotel, as without us it wouldnt carry on. Nonetheless we are those who earn less, and now they want lay us off. Because all the managers with good wages are safe inside there.
Fabio(Engineering dept): Hilton has decided to outsource these departments. However, my thinking goes like this: why is it that Hilton seems to suffer this crisis, but it appears to affect only these 33 workers and nobody else in the staff? So I wonder, isn't the crisis only an excuse to fire 33 employees? Beware!
Journalist: So, isn't the work these employees do anymore necessary to the company?
Rubens (Engineering dept): No, it's still useful. They want us to become part of another firm, but they still need us. For example, the point is that chambermaids will have their wage reduced, by around 20-30%. As regards the five of us who are currently working for maintenance, we would be enlisted in another firm, but they would still require the five of us! Ive been working here since 1987, that makes 22 years, and I would do the same job. The company's proposal is that, if I resign, they would give me two months wage and a new three months trial contract, carrying out the same tasks as before. I should just change my uniform from Hilton to Termigas.
Fabrizio (Engineering dept): Moreover, we would get a short-term contract, lasting 18 months. That is, passing from open-ended contracts that we have now to short-term ones.
Journalist: Anyway, recently the trade union has scored a point, as the magistrate condemned the Hilton for anti-unionist behaviour
Maestroni (CUB Trade Unionist): Yes, our lawyers sued the company, as during a strike in recent months the company has replaced the protesting workers with others from a cooperative. So we brought on a "paragraph 28" for anti-unionist behaviour, and on the 25th of August the magistrate has confirmed that the behaviour of the company was unfair towards the workers and sentenced it.
Journalist: Do you think is it possible to create a united front of all the Hilton workers in Italy?
Fabrizio (Engineering dept): We thought about this, but we have already seen here in Milan that the other departments dont show solidarity to us. So, we hope to make it, but I believe its unlikely.
Journalist (Engineering dept): Is there widespread individualism?
Fabrizio: Yes, it has been one of the key strategies of the management, especially in the last 8 years: they try to split the departments, as it happened when they first outsourced the maintenance work, they made everybody think that chambermaids would never be affected, but as you can see todays situation is different.
Maestroni (CUB Trade Unionist): We know that on average in one year there is a covering for 80% of the rooms, so this situation is not about costs but profits theyre trying to increase the profits, to the works quality disadvantage and at the workers rights expenses. This is why we are fighting.
Loading...
7:52
Hilton: le voci dei lavoratori in sciopero contro i licenziamentiby CUBvideo974 views
Link to this comment:
All Comments (0)