The possibility that Italy could ask for help from Frankfurt to contain the spread is remote. The Minister of Labor said this in an interview with "First of all", ElsaFornero, commenting on the plan launched yesterday by Mario Draghi, which foresees the availability of the ECB to purchase sovereign bonds of countries that request them, but under specific conditions.
“This government is working to prevent us from finding ourselves in that condition – said the minister – now is not the time to conjure up this scenario for us, I see it as a distant possibility".
As for the internal political situation, and in particular the difficult relationship with the trade unions, "I hope that there is no general strike – continued Fornero -. We work to create a climate of collaboration”. Susanna Camusso, leader of the CGIL, said instead of not ruling out this possibility at all, while the president of Confindustria, Giorgio Squinzi, believes that a "hot autumn" awaits us in the coming months.
With regard to the meeting with the unions on 11 September, the minister explained that the Government will appear "also to listen to the requests of the unions and to convince them that a common effort is needed to increase productivity, also for a recovery in wages : it is unlikely that they can be increased without a link to productivity”.
"Increased productivity - added Fornero - is the result of many actions, including second-level company agreements where solutions can be tested faster and more effectively".
As for the possibilities of refinancing for the detaxation of productivity wages and the reduction of the tax wedge, the minister explained that “we will study both measures: it is a question of finding resources, and nobody expects that they will be on a large scale. I personally am quite attached to the idea of a reduction in the tax wedge linked to good working relations. But I'm open, this is just one of the hypotheses that are being studied".
