In January 2007, the trade union representing petrol distributors in Italy announced 14 days of strike action, spanning over the months of February, March and April 2007, in protest against the measures approved by the government to liberalise the sector.
At its meeting on 24 January 2007, the Council of Ministers approved the liberalisation measures proposed by the Minister for Economic Development, Pierluigi Bersani (IT0607059I). Several of these measures will be applied in the form of a legislative bill with immediate effect, while others will be included in bills subsequently submitted to the parliament for further discussion.
The three organisations representing petrol station operators and workers in Italy announced 14 days of strike action in protest at the government’s decision to liberalise the market. On the trade union side, the Petrol Distribution Workers’ Union (Federazione Gestori Impianti Carburanti e Affini, Fegica) affiliated to the Italian Confederation of Workers’ Trade Unions (Confederazione Italiana Sindacati Lavoratori, Cisl) called for strike action, which was supported by the two employer organisations affiliated to the main associations in the commerce sector, Confesercenti and Confcommercio, the Autonomous Federation of Italian Petrol Station Operators and Association of Petrol Stations (Federazione Autonoma Italiana Benzinai/Associazione Impianti stazioni Autostrade Confesercenti, Faib/Aisa Confesercenti) and the Italian Federation of Petrol Station Managers and National Association of Motorway Service Stations (Federazione Italiana Gestori Impianti Stradali Carburanti/Associazione Nazionale Imprese Servizi Autostradali Confcommercio, Figisc/Anisa Confcommercio).
As a result, petrol stations remained closed for two days starting on 7 February 2007, and subsequently several days during the periods running from 25 February to 3 March and from 25 March to 3 April.
Provisions of government bill
The bill approved by the government includes three main provisions.
- Companies administering the roadway infrastructure must set up ‘means of information and reach agreements with radio networks to keep users informed of the various prices applied’. Petrol station attendants must use ‘the same methods’ to inform customers in a timely manner about the average fuel price applied in the area of the petrol station’s location.
- Large retailers such as big supermarkets and hypermarkets will also be authorised to sell fuel.
- Restrictions on the number of petrol stations will be eliminated, thus a minimum distance between one station and another will no longer be necessary. Moreover, the restrictions on the number of service stations in a given area will no longer apply.
Protest of petrol station operators
According to the employer organisations calling the strike, the new provisions have been adopted without taking into account the right of individual petrol station operators to have their say in relation to these matters. In addition, according to the trade unions, the measures:
- indicate ‘a desire to punish existing petrol stations’;
- weaken industrial investments in existing facilities and discourage any new investment;
- will lead to unemployment and will reduce diversification in the sector, lowering the quality of services offered.
Petrol station operators accuse the government of ‘closing the doors to any discussion by preferring demonstrative action’. However, Minister Bersani emphasises that the government does not wish to target petrol station operators ‘but issues relating to the liberalisation of the petrol market’; he adds that he is open to ‘talking with the parties involved’.
Other reactions to government proposal
The government’s measures have attracted a host of comments. According to the European Union Energy Commissioner, Andris Piebalgs, the liberalisation of fuel distribution will make it possible to ‘bring more guarantees and better prices to the consumer’. Guglielmo Epifani, General Secretary of the General Confederation of Italian Workers (Confederazione Generale Italiana del Lavoro, Cgil), requests petrol station operators to put forward any proposals towards the liberalisation of the market in an effort to initiate negotiations with the government. The consumer associations fully support the minister’s proposals.
Vilma Rinolfi, Cesos