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Europe
Thousands of Italian metalworkers in national strike for better pay and conditions
Thousands of metalworkers across Italy took part in an eight-hour strike March 28, demonstrating in Rome, Milan, Turin, Venice, Trieste, Genova and other cities.
The Italian Federation of Metalworkers, Italian Federation of Metal Mechanics, Italian General Confederation of Labour, Italian Confederation of Trade Unions and the Italian Labour Union members demand guarantees of greater safety in the workplace, wage increases and more job security. They want a national collective bargaining agreement.
This was the third such strike this year.
Tens of thousands of teachers in Basque region, Spain strike for pay improvements and reduced workloads
An estimated 20,000 teachers in the Basque region of Spain held a 48-hour strike Tuesday and demonstrated in Bilbao and other cities and towns to force negotiations with the regional government.
The Basque Workers’ Solidarity, National Workers’ Committees, Educators’ Union and Workers’ Commission union members are demanding pay aligned to the cost of living, more staff, employment guarantees and improved retirement arrangements.
Workers at engineering firm in Slough, England set to walk out over pay
Forty workers employed by engineering firm John Crane in Slough, England walked out on Thursday after rejecting a 3 percent pay offer.
The stoppage by Unite union members will be the first ever such action by John Crane workers. Crane manufactures mechanical engineering seals for bearings and pumps used in the oil and gas industries.
The workers have endured 10 years of below-inflation pay rises, as well as working throughout the pandemic with no pay rise and losing their final salary pensions in 2009. By contrast, last year the previous CEO received a 22 percent pay increase.
Following Thursday’s stoppage, strikes are scheduled for April 10, 17, 22 and May 1 and 6.
Strike by support staff at London school over job cuts
School support staff at Tower Hamlets primary school in London struck on Tuesday.
The GMB union members walked out over plans by the school to reduce the number of support staff from 28 to 21. This would not only cut jobs but also increase the workload of remaining staff. The school is experiencing an increasing number of pupils with special educational needs and challenging behaviour, who need assistance from support staff.
A further stoppage was planned for Thursday.
Strike by drivers at UK’s Hull Trains over sacking of colleague for raising safety concerns halted by Aslef union
Train drivers employed by Hull Trains, which runs services on the UK’s East Coast main line began an all-out eight-week strike on Monday over victimisation.
According to news reports, however, Aslef suspended the action Wednesday saying Hull Trains was “willing to work toward a resolution.”
Hull Trains is owned by the transport giant FirstGroup.
The Aslef union members were holding stoppages each Friday and Saturday, beginning March 7, in support of a driver with more than 20 year’s experience who was sacked after raising safety concerns in a meeting.
Aslef has a 100 percent membership at Hull Trains.
Middle East
Lebanese teachers strike over pay
Teachers across Lebanon held a strike March 26 over their continuing economic plight.
The basic monthly salary for teachers, including incentives, is around $330. The government reneged on a previous agreement to give teachers an additional productivity allowance of $375 a month.
The teachers’ plight is exacerbated by Lebanon’s ongoing economic crisis, which goes back years. According to the World Bank, the poverty rate tripled to 44 percent in the decade to 2024. Recent attacks by Israel have added to the crisis.
Protests and industrial action continue across Iran in response to the ongoing economic crisis
Tuesday saw protests by farmers continue in Isfahan. They were demanding access to water from the Zayandeh Rud river to irrigate their crops. They accuse the government of mismanaging supplies and diverting water to the military industries. The farmers refused to be intimidated by the heavy presence of security forces.
The farmers also held protests on Sunday, following protests last week.
Pensioners held a protest in Rasht on Monday against the inadequate level of pensions and government corruption.
The continuing deteriorating economic and social conditions are fuelling the ongoing protests and strike. US attempts to undermine the regime and plans for war only serve to exacerbate social distress.
Africa
Primary health centre workers and teachers strike in Abuja, Nigeria to demand minimum wage
Health centre workers in Nigeria’s capital, Abuja, took further strike action March 24 over pay.
The National Union of Local Government Employees members received their February 2025 salaries but not the N70,000 minimum wage they were promised. The Nigeria Union of Teachers in the Federal Capital Territory, which includes Abuja, also began an indefinite stoppage on March 24 over the same issue.
Members of the public affected by the strikes expressed frustration that the state government had failed to pay the minimum wage to its employees.
South African municipal workers at Amatola Water Board, Eastern Cape strike over sacking of shop stewards
Workers at Amatola Water Board, Eastern Cape, South Africa walked out March 26 on an unprotected strike.
Management refused to address their grievances over wages and conditions and sacked 10 shop stewards, leading to the walkout.
Eastern Cape premier and sanitation minister intervened to end the strike, and a court interdict was granted March 27 to enforce a return to work. The South African Municipal Workers Union is awaiting confirmation of a meeting with management on Monday.
Liberian students protest against non-payment of teachers’ salaries
Liberian school students staged a protest on March 25, disrupting traffic in the capital Monrovia. They complain their education is disrupted by delays in teachers getting paid. The students are also demanding that volunteer teachers be added to the payroll.
Health workers on strike in Tambura, South Sudan over non-payment of wages
Health workers in Tambura county, Western Equatoria in South Sudan walked out at the end of March after not being paid for several months.
Sixty-nine members of the medical staff have not been paid their salaries, which are jointly funded by UNICEF and other agencies through the Health Sector Transformation Project.
County Health Director Edward Dazanga explained, “We received three months’ worth of incentives, but three months are still pending. The health workers depend on these payments to support their families.”