Civil Academy: Trade union and labor peace

At the last evening of the Civil Academy, held on March 4, this time the role and possibilities of trade unions based on Christian principles in Europe were discussed. The two invited guests, Gian Luigi Ferretti, director of international relations of the Italian UGL Christian trade union, and Imre Palkovics, president of the National Association of Workers' Councils, spoke about the end of the era of the class fighter trade union movement and the new type of interest protection.

Mr. Ferretti said that the UGL has been in existence for 71 years and when they were founded, they announced that the time of class-fighting unions was over, that a system based on the cooperation of employers and employees should be created instead , since both parties "row in the same boat". By the way, the UGL is a Christian advocacy group declared to be unique in the world.

Imre Palkovics recalled that the closer relationship between UGL and the Workers' Councils began in 2015. Due to the sudden increase in migration, they were also curious about the Italian experience, since Italy had been under migration pressure for years, if not to the extent it was then. The two organizations represent similar values ​​and it was not possible to understand why the European Union wants to solve the labor shortage with illegal immigrants, why not in the same way as Hungary, that is, by encouraging childbearing. From the point of view of trade unions, the large-scale, unlimited influx of migrants represented and still represents a direct threat to the preservation of jobs and offers an opportunity to significantly reduce wages.

Speaking about the trade union movement, he explained that the basic attitude of the class fighter - after achieving the main goals - has now gone too far, because it only creates tensions in society. The approach of the workers' councils is Christian-social based, simply put, the goal is to make the worker a citizen. Such an experiment was the case of the Herend Porcelángyár, where 75 percent of the owners of the company are the workers themselves, so they are both employers and employees.

Gian Luigi Ferretti gave an elegant Italian response to the unjust accusations against our country. He stated that he would like to come to Hungary because he can breathe the air of freedom here. He believed that our country is a forward-looking bastion of European interests and values, which resists even the false demands of political correctness. Speaking about the relationship between their union and the Italian government, he said that of course they support the right-wing forces because they represent Italian interests. During the League administration, Matteo Salvini specifically asked for UGL's opinion regarding the work, and one of the organization's vice-presidents also served as state secretary in the government.

Imre Palkovics explained that the Christian-social idea is extremely important, since poverty and vulnerability are a powder keg. XIII. He quoted the thought of Pope Pius: The worker is also an image of God, that is, worthy of human living conditions. The Bible also clearly states: The worker is worthy of his wages. That is, you deserve a decent income for a decent job. Of course, governments of different colors handle this in different ways, and it is also certain that no worker will ever say that they do not want higher wages. Trade unions would have a big role in creating a balance, but unfortunately it is not that simple here. During the 40 years of socialism, only pseudo-unions operated and the image that still affects today was formed that the union is worthless. In addition, the representation of Christian values ​​and principles has fallen into the background, but fortunately it still exists.

Mr. Ferretti's opinion, the Christian Italians, Hungarians, and Spaniards still have a lot of work to do, because what is needed is a Europe where sacredness regains its original role and profit is not above all else. We must stop the perverse process of more and more poor people and ever more enormous wealth accumulated by a very few. The primacy of politics over money power must be restored. There is a need for a balance between employers, employees and their governments, and capital must always have a socio-social function. In addition to profit, people should also be important.

Imre Palkovics confirmed this, adding that during socialism there was no real, collective representation of interests. Unfortunately, it has not been possible to get everyone to accept that together we are stronger and better able to protect our common interests. So your government chooses whether to involve the employees in the shunts or make decisions over their heads.

In response to a question, Gian Luigi Ferretti They believe that this trend is dangerous for them, and this is basically the case. For a long time, the UGL only defended itself, but for a few years now they have been looking for allies in other countries. Their great achievement, for example, is that they successfully helped establish the Spanish Solidaridad trade union, which has been growing ever since. They also successfully organized the protection of the interests of food couriers in Italy, for which the leftists tried to exclude UGL from this area. In general, it can be said of the left that they cannot govern, but they can lie. And they repeat the lies until they believe it themselves, even though there is only one truth.

Regarding the issue of illegal migration, the director of UGL explained that it is a child of globalism. It is a good tool to suppress wages and deprive employees of acquired rights. If foreign labor is needed - because it may be needed - in certain areas, it must come to the given country legally, based on quotas, and it should only be employed with the same regular employment contract as the other workers receive. But the illegal immigrant is not like that. It is a fact that one's heart goes out to those unfortunate people who live on the streets, have no work and no income (often they support themselves from crime, drug and girl trafficking), who lose their lives during the sea crossing, but those who help them, the good people only deal with them until they are put ashore. This is why illegal immigration needs to be tackled.

Imre Palkovics said that the Workers' Councils welcomed the change of government in 2010, and that they were puzzled by the fact that almost from the moment of the election, harsh attacks from the Union hit the new government, which had not yet been formed. These attacks have continued ever since. He mentioned the Hungarian press law as an example, in connection with which they tried to explain to their partners why it was necessary - with little success. The Workers' Council is also a member of an EU organization that is in principle Christian-based, but it must be seen that right now they want to pass a resolution that contains LGBTQ, woke and similar liberal principles. And they don't want to accept that a Christian-based organization can't sign such a thing.

Mr. Ferratti put it this way: Europe is not only a geographical unity, but also a spiritual one. When the predecessor of the Union was established, it was driven by a dual purpose. With the Coal and Steel Union, they wanted to prevent the production of the means of war and to give food to the starving after the war. We dreamed of a Europe like the one we talked about until now, he said, but the dream has now turned into a nightmare. Europe has withered away without ideals, as evidenced by the fact that the reference to Christian roots would have been omitted from the planned European Constitution. Today, the Union has no soul, and instead of an alliance of strong nations, they want to create some kind of liberal chaos. We will also protest against this when we come to the Peace March with a large banner that will read: Europe of nations for the European homeland.

Imre Palkovics emphasized that not only certain trade unions, but also a large part of civilians are acting in the interest of a new Europe. This is what the many movements of the CÖF and the international non-governmental organization EU-CET, which will also have a say in the consultation on the future of the European Union, serve.

In this regard, Gian Luigi Ferretti Hungary has always been the defender of Europe, and it is still today, not only on a physical level, but also on a spiritual level. If this fails, our big dream will remain just a dream, and we do not want to wake up from this dream to find ourselves on an Islamized continent. Either we will have the Europe we dream of, or there will be no Europe.