Italy faces nationwide shutdown next week as Trade Unions call 12 December general strike

December 6, 2025 in Business, Foreign News, Travel & Tourism by Editor

Italy’s largest trade union, the CGIL, is set to lead a nationwide strike on 12 December, escalating tensions with the Meloni government over wages, pensions and public spending. The protest highlights growing discontent over economic policy, strained public services and proposed pension reforms.

Italy is bracing for a major national shutdown on 12 December as the country’s largest trade union, the CGIL, prepares to lead a sweeping general strike in protest against the government’s proposed 2026 budget. The action is expected to disrupt transport, public services and industrial activity across the country, marking one of the most significant confrontations between organised labour and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s administration.

The strike, announced earlier this month, is the culmination of rising frustration within Italy’s labour movement over what union leaders describe as an economic direction that places new burdens on wage earners while expanding defence spending. CGIL General Secretary Maurizio Landini has framed the mobilisation as a defence of workers’ dignity at a time when wages have stagnated, essential public services are strained and pension reforms threaten to push retirement further out of reach.

According to the union, the government’s fiscal approach over the past three years has effectively imposed €25 billion in additional tax pressure on employees and pensioners through fiscal drag — the automatic increase in tax burden caused by inflation. Workers on average incomes have lost as much as €2,000 annually, while capital, corporate profits and beneficiaries of preferential tax regimes have not faced similar pressure. Labour advocates argue that the budget not only fails to correct this imbalance but deepens it, without reinvesting savings into the health, education or welfare systems that millions rely on.

Public services are at the centre of union concerns. Funding for the national health system is set to fall below 6pc of GDP, the lowest in decades, at a time when nearly six million Italians reportedly skip medical care due to cost or access barriers. Schools, public housing, transport networks, elder care and workplace safety systems continue to face chronic underfunding, even as the government allocates fresh resources to military modernisation.

Tensions are also rising over pension reform proposals that unions say surpass the severity of the contentious Fornero reforms of a decade ago. The measures would increase the retirement age further and restrict existing flexibility options, affecting nearly all workers. Labour groups warn that young Italians — already squeezed by precarious employment and low wages — could see their prospects worsen, contributing to the ongoing trend of young professionals leaving the country.

The union’s demands extend beyond immediate wage concerns. CGIL is calling for the renewal of expired labour contracts, additional funding for public sector agreements, and measures to neutralise fiscal drag. Its platform includes stronger fiscal equity provisions, a reinforced 14th-month payment for low-income workers and pensioners, and a guaranteed contributory pension for those with intermittent careers. Unions also want a robust industrial policy to manage technological and environmental transitions while creating stable, quality jobs.

To fund these measures, the CGIL argues for tapping profits, windfall gains, large estates and widespread tax evasion, asserting that a 1pc solidarity contribution from the wealthiest Italians could generate €26 billion annually. Landini has also urged the government to halt its accelerated defence procurement plans, contending that diverting nearly €1 trillion toward military spending over time would undermine social priorities.

The 12 December strike will involve both public- and private-sector workers, with variations according to essential services regulations. Rail transport is expected to stop from early morning until 21:00, while firefighters will participate with a four-hour work stoppage. Some critical sectors — including environmental sanitation, certain justice ministry staff and air transport — are exempt.

Union leaders will appear at rallies in multiple cities, with Landini addressing the demonstration in Florence. Organisers say the mobilisation is not only a protest but a call for a renewed social contract that places workers, young people, older citizens and vulnerable groups at the centre of national policy.

As Italy heads into the winter period marked by economic uncertainty and rising living costs, the 12 December strike represents a test of strength between the government and a labour movement determined to force a shift in national priorities.