3rd Practice Exchange on Intercultural Capacity-building: Novel cooperation with Italian trade union confederation CGIL on Intercultural Dialogue in the work place

   

The work place as a primary place for intercultural engagement and the negotiation of rights and entitlements of immigrant workers – this was the topic discussed by over 70 participants made up of CGIL officials and members, as well as representatives of civic organisations. Particular attention was paid to how becoming a “multi-ethnic trade union confederation” has both affected CGIL’s classical trade union work and lead to new kinds of socio-cultural and training activities. Yet consensus emerged that intercultural dialogue at work is challenged by the Italian legal context, political climate and media discourse. Many saw nothing less at stake than Italian democracy itself: “We are told not to complain about a lack of democratic rights because we don’t have them in our countries of origin either. I retort that that is exactly why we came”, said a participant of Eritrean origins. The meeting concluded that trade unions need to form unconventional alliances in order to make Italian society intercultural with new principles of participation.

Read the presentation of Sergio Bonetti on training as a tool for intercultural dialogue in the workplace: PPT in Italian or summary in English
Read the final report
Read the Italian press coverage of the event 

Organised in collaboration with Platform member CGIL Roma e Lazio