M5S Latina promuove raccolta firme per salario minimo.

Ciolfi (M5S): “From Sunday 17th September, M5S Latina returns to the streets to give voice to citizens, with the collection of signatures in support of the proposal for a minimum wage law”

“The approval of the minimum wage law is a necessary step to give dignity to workers and to promote the country’s productivity growth: the government’s postponement is no longer justifiable”.

M5S has been fighting for a minimum wage for a long time. A unified bill has been filed with other opposition forces in the government (Alliance Green and Left – Action – 5 Star Movement – Democratic Party – More Europe), under the leadership of President Conte, which provides that no worker can receive an hourly wage lower than 9 euros, without considering the thirteenth month, fourteenth month, severance pay, etc., which must be considered separately. The minimum wage law guarantees a right enshrined in Article 36 of our Constitution, which states that everyone who works has the right to a salary proportional to the quantity and quality of their work and sufficient to ensure a free and dignified existence for themselves and their families.

This right is constantly violated: in Italy, there are over three million people who, despite working, are poor. From Sunday 17th September, M5S will also have booths in Latina and many other Italian cities for the collection of physical signatures, which will be added to the online petition in support of this bill, available on the website www.salariominimosubito.it. All civilized countries, governed by the left and the right, have a minimum wage, while Italy, despite being the eighth country in the world in terms of GDP, continually postpones the approval of this law. The government majority asks to study the issue more thoroughly and appeals to the fact that bargaining already exists, but we know that this tool currently fails to increase low wages. On the contrary, this bill strengthens collective bargaining, making the overall remuneration provided by the collective agreement signed by the most representative trade unions and employers’ associations applicable to all workers in a sector. This way, it fights “pirate” contracts, false companies, false cooperatives, and outsourcing that lead to underpayment of workers. Furthermore, the proposal also extends its effects to self-employed and freelance workers, which represents an important point of innovation.

This law also intervenes in future pensions: by guaranteeing a minimum wage of 9 euros per month today, we solve the problem of too low pensions that we would face in the future. All economists agree on the need for a minimum wage, the doubt can only be about the threshold, and the 9 euro threshold allows us to be in the right range to avoid the ineffectiveness of a too low threshold, or the risk of shifting the market with a too high threshold, and coincides with European indications. Low wages lead to low productivity in the country because they are connected to precarity and lack of investments: even the country’s productivity will grow with adequate wages. The government must take responsibility for a choice and say YES or NO to the minimum wage in front of the Italian people. Our booths for the collection of signatures will be present from Sunday 17th September, every Sunday from 10 am to 7 pm on Corso della Repubblica corner with Via Eugenio di Savoia, and every Tuesday morning at the weekly market. Join us to defend the labor rights enshrined in our constitution and to make our country a more civilized and fair place, where we can live with dignity”.

This is a statement by Maria Grazia Ciolfi, councilor and leader of M5S Latina.