Tension but also harmony over COVID-19 in Europe’s chemical industry

Italy, one of the nations worst affected by COVID-19, is now experiencing tension between industrial workers and chemical companies. Workers in the Lombardy region of northern Italy threatened to strike this week because of concerns that they may be exposed unnecessarily to the coronavirus while on the job.

A wide range of chemical production is considered essential in Italy and not subject to quarantine shutdowns. Filctem CGIL, Femca and Uiltec, unions representing industrial workers in Italy, had planned to call a strike to challenge the breadth of the policy.

But it was called off after a last-minute agreement on March 25 between the unions and the Italian government limiting the types of chemicals classified as essential. Under new government rules, production of dyes, pigments, inks, and explosives are now considered nonessential, and workers do not have to continue making them. New protocols have also been agreed to for worker safety in fields where production is ongoing.