ITALY - STRIKE
Prodi's government orders truckers to stop strike
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Italy's transport ministry has ordered truck drivers to stop the strike that has paralysed the country for five days.
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
By Reuters
Filling stations across Italy ran dry and factories closed on Tuesday as truckers closed motorways for a second day in a protest over high fuel prices and contracts that threatened to bring the economy to a halt.
Blockading strategic points on highways, the truckers stopped cars and freight deliveries in a strike that business leaders said should be broken up by force if necessary.
Fiat shut down its car factories for lack of spare parts and told 22,000 workers to stay at home. Bewildered drivers in Rome were turned away from gas stations displaying hand-written signs to say there was no fuel due to the strike.
"If it doesn't stop by this evening all gas stations will close," said trade association Confesercenti which representspart of the fuel distribution trade. "Already 80 percent of them are without fuel."
Italy's strikes commission said the protest was illegal and the transport ministry issued an injunction to order the truckers back to work as of midnight (2300 GMT Tuesday).
"The way this protest is happening has my complete disapproval," Prime Minister Romano Prodi said. "This is not the way to discuss these issues."
Representatives of independent truck drivers -- the owner-drivers who make up the majority of Italy's haulage sector -- walked out of talks with the government after just one hour, leaving only the larger trucking companies talking to Prodi's
officials.
officials.
That could mean the strike -- initially announced as a five-day protest -- could continue until Friday if truckers decide to defy the injunction.
Truckers want the government to intervene to cut fuel costs and to crack down on what they call unfair competition from foreign hauliers they say do not respect the rules and drive down prices.
CHRISTMAS THREAT
Employers' federation Confindustria urged the government to send in police to break up the blockades.
"It's inconceivable that at a time like this the country and the economy can be brought to a standstill," said Confindustria head Luca Cordero di Montezemolo.
Fiat shares closed down 2.33 percent after news of the plant closures.
Agriculture Minister Paolo De Castro told Reuters: "So close to the Christmas holidays, such a serious block in traffic is a terrible situation for all sectors, but especially for the food sector."
Farmers' group Coldiretti said it feared "incalculable damage" if fruit and vegetables were unable to get to market, especially in the lead-up to Christmas.
Makers of panettone, Italian Christamas cakes, said they feared their products would not get to the shops in time, and in sufficient quantity for the holiday season.
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