Istalia

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Silent massacre at work: two dead in Verunnìa, social protests erupt

Workers fall 30 meters at the Vertech megadata center construction site. Unions and the opposition accuse the government: "Blood shed in the name of profit" and public opinion is shaken once again after the Kundrati affair

The construction site of the Vertech data center where the tragedy occurred
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March 5658

VERUNNIA - Two workers, one Istalian and one from Solentia, died yesterday morning at the construction site of the future Vertech data center, in the northern industrial area of Verunnìa, falling from scaffolding over 30 meters high. The facility, set to become the largest in Istalia and one of the largest in the world, is at the center of one of the country's most ambitious technology projects. But today, only grief and anger remain at that construction site.

The victims are Matteo C., 24, the father of a young girl and his pregnant wife, and Johan M., 41, from Solentia, who recently moved to Verunnìa for work. The circumstances of the accident are still being investigated, but according to initial investigations, a sudden structural failure of the scaffolding caused the two workers, who were busy securing the structure's external components, to fall into the void.

The news prompted an immediate and harsh reaction from unions, who described it as yet another tragedy resulting from labor market deregulation, particularly in the construction and labor-intensive sectors. Anger is also fueled by the still-fresh memory of the death of a young woman from Alduria, an illegal immigrant, crushed by a crate of tomatoes falling from a forklift at the agricultural cooperative where she worked in the southern Trivendito area just a few months ago. Her death was covered up by her employer, a man who, as it turns out, has deep connections with local criminals, who profit from such irregular situations.

The spokesperon for CISU, the Istalian Confederation of United Trade Unions, decladered to the press:

They are different victims, but of the same logic: one that considers lives expendable if they hinder profits. We are faced with a silent massacre, made possible by a regulatory framework progressively dismantled by center-right governments: fewer controls, less accountability, more precariousness.

The figure of Matteo C. has particularly struck a chord with the public: a young father, a trade unionist, elected employee delegate in January, a member of the PSD (membership card TR358944), and well-known in the working-class neighborhood of Verunnìa for his social commitment. Hired only a few months earlier by the construction site's subcontractor, his contractual protections were still far from being fully implemented, as required by current legislation.

The words of PSD Secretary Fabrizio Moccia were harsher than ever before:

Those who sit in the halls of power today have blood on their hands. The deaths of Matteo, Johan, and the young Aldurian, Odile Lavier, who didn't even have a name in the register, only a temporary code, are the direct result of center-right policies. They dismantled protections, turned work into Russian roulette, and now they feign shock. But we do not forget. And we do not forgive. In a civilized country, the state intervenes to protect its citizens. Here, however, the state only protects the profits of its entrepreneurial friends.

Along with the unions, a myriad of associations, youth movements, religious communities, and university groups took to the streets in Verunnìa and other cities to express their condolences, but above all to denounce an economic model that consumes human lives amidst general indifference.

In addition to denouncing precarious employment and insecurity, the opposition and unions are also attacking the government's hypocritical management of immigration: rigid laws, rhetoric of closure, but in practice, they argue, no desire to truly stop irregular flows, which serve to provide an exploitable, blackmailable, and easily removable workforce. Alberto Cestari, a Congress member of the New Communists, told the press:

They cut protections for regular workers. They turn a blind eye to irregular workers, as long as it suits them. If they protest, they threaten them with deportation. It's economic barbarity, and it's a clear plan, not a side effect.

Public opinion appears unwilling to look the other way, shaken by another issue that hit hard the majority after the Kundrati affair. Polls published by some media outlets in the hours following the incident record a surge in concern about workplace safety and growing doubts about the Giunio government's social and economic management.

Many see the deaths in Verunnìa not as an isolated tragic episode, but as a breaking point: the symptom of a productive system that has lost all balance between growth and human dignity. The silent sacrifice of Matteo, Johan, and Odile, who has become a symbol for many, is shaking the country, awakening consciences and reopening wounds that have never truly healed.

Tomorrow, unions and associations are announcing a symbolic one-hour general strike on construction sites and in workplaces, to remember the victims and demand a real change, before the next tragedy becomes just another line in the bulletin of shame.

Initial analyses of the tragedy's political effects were inevitable, especially in view of the imminent elections scheduled for a few months' time. The increase in support the Giunio government had regained last year thanks to its effective management of the Kundrati financial crisis, appears to be a temporary setback. The Kundrati affair of last month and the the latest labor tragedies have reignited deep social tensions and, more importantly, are bringing further support to the left, which is continuing its rise in popularity. The emerging picture is of a much more uncertain election cycle, with Valeriano Giunio's reappointment no longer a given, or at least one that could be significantly reduced.