The Italian General Confederation of Labour (, ; CGIL ) is a national trade union centre in Italy. It was formed by an agreement between socialists, communists, and Christian democrats in the "Pact of Rome" of June 1944. In 1950, socialists and Christian democrats split forming UIL and CISL, and since then the CGIL has been influenced by the Italian Communist Party (PCI) and until recent years by its political heirs: the Democratic Party of the Left (PDS), the Democrats of the Left (DS) and currently the Democratic Party (PD).
It has been the most important Italian trade union since its creation. It has a membership of over 5.5 million. Along with the decline of membership within its political counterpart, the Democratic Party (PD), its membership is in steep decline since 2013, with the percentage of pensioners in constant rise. On 1 July 2015, the number of working adults reached a ceiling of 2.185.099. The CGIL is currently the second-largest trade union in Europe, after the German DGB, which has over 6 million members. The CGIL is affiliated with the International Trade Union Confederation and the European Trade Union Confederation, and is a member of the Trade Union Advisory Committee to the OECD.
History
Beginnings and opposition to Fascism
The roots of CGIL date back to early 1900s with the foundation of the General Confederation of Labour, an Italian labour union founded in 1906, under the initiative of socialist members. In 1926, during the fascist dictatorship of Benito Mussolini, CGdL's headquarter in Milan was attacked and completely destroyed by fascist blackshirts; after few months, the CGdL's central committee decided to dissolve the trade union and disbanded the entire organization. Their decision was opposed by communists and left socialists like Bruno Buozzi, who spent the next decades maintaining the old trade union clandestinely. The underground CGdL faced a perilous course, not only because of the fascist repression, but because of the dramatic changes in direction of the Communist International (IC). In 1929 Italian communist militants were ordered to enter fascist trade unions, only to be told in 1935, when the IC adopted the Popular Front strategy, to reconcile with the socialists and other anti-fascists in trade unions and faced the fascist regime.
On 9 June 1944, the Pact of Rome was signed between representatives of the three main anti-fascist parties: the Christian Democracy (DC), the Italian Socialist Party (PSI) and the Italian Communist Party (PCI). However, a few days before, Bruno Buozzi, who had worked intensively on the Pact, was murdered by the Nazi troops. The pact established the foundation of a new CGdL, named Italian General Confederation of Labour (CGIL). The Pact was signed by Giuseppe Di Vittorio for the PCI, by Achille Grandi for the DC and by Emilio Canevari for the PSI. The latter will be later replaced as responsible for the socialist component of CGIL by Oreste Lizzadri.
Despite the unitary CGIL was strongly supported by communists and socialists, the Catholic Church did not oppose it. However, in 1945 it favoured the establishment of the Christian Associations of Italian Workers (ACLI). Until the end of the World War, the CGIL worked in the freed regions to spread the so-called "Labour Chambers" and stipulated wage agreements. With the general insurrection proclaimed by the Italian Resistance on 25 April 1945 and the definitive defeat of the Nazi-Fascist regime, the CGIL extended its influence throughout the country. The trade union contributed to the victory of the Republic in the 1946 institutional referendum, that ended the Savoy's monarchy.
First congress and split
On 1 February 1947, Salvatore Giuliano, a Sicilian bandit and separatist leader, killed 11 farmworkers and wounded other 27, during May Day celebrations in the municipality of Piana degli Albanesi. His aim had been to punish local leftists for the recent election results. In an open letter, he took sole responsibility for the murders and claimed that he had only wanted his men to fire above the heads of the crowd; the deaths had been a mistake. The massacre created a national scandal and The CGIL called a general strike in protest against the massacre. According to newspaper reports hints at the possibility of civil war were heard as communist leaders harangued meetings of 6,000,000 workers who struck throughout Italy in protest against the massacre.