Against Black Friday: Amazon workers in Germany and Italy are going on strike

More than 500 Amazon employees in Europe will go on strike on Black Friday in a bid to win higher pay from the retailer, according to trade unions.

Large numbers of employees in Germany and Italy will stay home for one of the busiest shopping days of the year in a bid to win concessions from their employer.

Workers at Amazon's main Italian distribution hub posted a statement saying that they would walk out after attempts to secure bonuses from management broke down.

È la tua rivoluzione: Italian communists honored the October Revolution in Rome

The Communist Party of Italy (PC) and Front of Communist Youth (FGC) organized a massive meeting and march on Colosseum Square of Rome. Dedicated to the centenary of the October Revolution, the event promoted communism as the only real alternative against capitalist barbarity. With the participation of thousands of people, city of Rome was decorated with red flags.

Around 5 thousand workers and students got together on Colosseum Square of Rome with their red flags for honouring the centenary of the Great October Socialist Revolution, in respect to the call from the Communist Party and Front of Communist Youth against the anti-popular policies of the EU, NATO and the Italian government. Before the event, thousands of people marhced on the streets of Rome with their chants and slogans.

ITALY: Communist Party raises its voice against the EU with a large demonstration

Sotiris Zarianopoulos, KKE MEP, delivers his
speech at the event.

On the occasion of the 60 years since the Treaty of Rome the Communist Party of Italy (Partito Comunista) organised a large anti-EU demonstration in Rome. The event was attended by representatives of Communist and Workers Parties, such as the Workers Party of Austria, the Communist Party of the Peoples of Spain (PCPE), the Communist-Revolutiony Party of France. 

The Communist Party of Greece (KKE) was represented by the KKE MEP Sotiris Zarianopoulos who delivered a greeting message.

Messages were also delivered by representatives of local labor unions and workers' associations. The event was concluded with speeches by the Secretary of the Front of the Communist Youth (Fronte della Gioventù Comunista) Lorenzo Lang and the General Secretary of Partito Comunista Marco Rizzo. 

PAME: Solidarity with the General Strike of Italy's USB (Unione Sindacale di Base) on October 21

The All-Workers Militant Front (PAME) expresses its solidarity with the workers and the USB (Unione Sindacale di Base) of Italy for their strike on October 21.

The attack of the Renzi Government in Italy, as well as the directives of the European Union in all countries of Europe, for wage and pension cuts, cuts in social benefits and social security, they all aim to safeguard the profits of the business groups. In this context escalates oppression, repression against trade union rights and freedoms, intimidations by the employers. Tragic consequence of these developments was the recent murder of the striker-USB member Abdel Salam El Danaf.

The class trade union movement of Greece supports the just demands of the Italian workers and expresses its solidarity to USB for the Strike it organizes on October 21.

Logistics worker Abdelssalam Eldanf murdered while on strike in Italy - Reactions by Labour Unions

Source: Struggles in Italy.

During the night between September 14 and 15, Abdelssalam Eldanf was killed while he was on strike with other workers in front of the GLS logistic plant in Piacenza. He was crushed by a truck that was trying to force the picket line. According to the workers, the truck driver was ordered to break the picket line by the Chief of Staff at the plant.

A strike had been called against the company contracted to run the plant, the SEAM. The company had fired 37 temporary workers, as well as a group of workers organized with the USB base union, who were actively leading struggles on the workplace. SEAM had previously agreed to re-hire 13 of the workers, but it suddenly rejected the agreement. Therefore, the workers immediately went on strike and blocked the exit of trucks from the plant.

European Communist Initiative: Statement on the meeting of the so-called “Alliance of the South” in Athens

From left to right: French President Francois
Hollande, Greek PM Alexis Tsipras and Spain's
PM Mariano Rajoy. (Archive Photo).

The European Communist Initiative carried out an important intervention regarding the upcoming meeting of the heads of the states of the so-called “European South”, which the Greek government is organizing on the 9^thof September in Athens.

The “European Communist Initiative” notes in this statement that the organizers of this meeting aim to utilize it to reinforce the illusions of the peoples of Europe about an “Alliance of the South”, which will allegedly “put an end to austerity” and calls on the peoples to strengthen their struggle to overturn the anti-people political line of the EU and the capitalist system which they serve.

The full statement of the Secretariat of “European Communist Initiative” can be found below:

“A conference of the leaders of the Mediterranean countries of the EU, of the so-called "South" of the EU, will be held in Athens on the 9th of September, at the initiative of the "left" SYRIZA-ANEL government of the new memoranda and the dozens of anti-worker measures, and will be focused on the developments in the EU, the refugee-immigrant question and the notorious issue of "development".