A nationwide strike truce was signed by Italian unions Wednesday for the period covering the Turin 2006 Winter Olympic Games which will force the postponement of an Alitalia airline strike scheduled for the day of the Opening Ceremony.
All major Italian unions signed the agreement, including representatives from the country’s three big labour organizations – CGIL, CISL and UIL.
The Turin Games run from February 10-26 and the Paralympics are March 10-19. The truce will last from January 31 to March 23 and includes a prevision allowing strikes on March 4.
Sergio Betti, a CISL official, said a strike truce is necessary to ensure a smooth Olympics and “to present a good image of the country”.
Local Turin unions signed an Olympic no-strike clause in November.
The truce will also ban telecommunications and railways protests.
A strike by a small Milan TV workers’ union caused the postponement of the giant slalom at last season’s Alpine skiing world championships in Bormio.
Meanwhile the International Ski Federation is concerned about the preparations for the Olympic men’s downhill course, saying there is not enough snow cover on the upper part of the course at Sestriere, Italy. World Cup race directors Helmut Schmalzl and Guenter Hujara wrote in an official FIS report “the current situation is very critical”.
The Olympic men’s downhill takes place on February 11, the day after the Opening Ceremony.
Hujara said Schmalzl visited the site last weekend and placed gates in the dirt. They are also concerned that uncovered rocks near the T-bar carrying athletes to the start constitute a safety hazard.
They would like to see organizers take advantage of low temperatures to make more snow and ferry it to the start, possibly with the help of helicopters.
