The secular workers of the Vatican are protesting cuts and employment policies. In their letter, they “think... about the sense of service in the Holy See” which, alternatively of putting emphasis on the evangelical community of values, is increasingly like a corporation.
As 1 of the reasons for concern, the announced list identifies the practice of alleged worker outsourcing, which consists in the delegation of certain tasks to external service providers. Members of the association recognized that this was a "radical change of course; from a tiny community inspired by the values of the Gospel to the company in the full sense of the word".
“Now we are talking about 'company culture'. So what does the Vatican become?” asked the association. In his opinion, the situation created besides sparked a discussion about the sense of work for Vatican offices. After all, work in a peculiar atmosphere, among people trying to practice evangelical virtues at the place of employment, was about its value in confronting competition.
"Being part of this community of workers should mean belonging to a peculiar household with circumstantial values that give it peculiar characteristics which separate external companies, especially private companies", the letter states.
With the outsorting of crucial tasks to external operators, specified as entrusting the management of real property to Italian agencies, or the transfer of the Vatican supermarket of the Italian large-area chain of shops, The Vatican introduces policies limiting working conditions for its employees. This includes a ban on hiring fresh people, granting bonuses and extraordinary expenses, and reforming wages.
The workers besides complain about the unfair way in which people are promoted to managerial positions, which “does not always proceed according to merit”.
This is another protest by Vatican workers. In May, a group of 49 museum staff sent a petition to the Vatican authorities for leaving much to be desired employment conditions. In the letter, they demanded that working conditions and pay be improved, that the Museum complies with the principles of wellness and safety and that overtime be paid in a decent way.
In addition, in the pandemic, the Holy See introduced an absolute vaccination order against COVID-19; not taking the preparation even threatened to lose his job. Following the workers' protests, Cardinal Giuseppe Bertello withdrew from the strictest restrictions, convincing that "alternative solutions" would be developed for those refusing vaccination.
Calling for respect for labour law and dignity is simply a constant motive during the current pontificate. In 2014, in the European Parliament, Pope Francis called for "the time has come to support employment policy, but above all, the dignity of work must be restored, besides ensuring adequate working conditions." On the another hand, in May 2020, he prayed at the labour Day homily "that no 1 should be short of work and everyone should be well paid and enjoy the dignity of work and the beauty of leisure."
Source: interia.pl / rp.pl / vaticannews.va
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