Cooperativa Fema under judicial control for worker exploitation in Milan

The first step of judicial proceedings against Cooperativa Fema, based in Rho, has concluded. The Milan prosecutor Paolo Storari highlighted the cooperative's criminal conduct, paying employees net wages below €5 per hour (never above €6.50), below the poverty line. Fema recruited labor until July 2024 under exploitative conditions, taking advantage of workers' need. Clients include Teatro alla Scala, Museo Nazionale della Scienza e della Tecnica, and Fiera di Milano, though they are not under investigation. Two other cooperatives, Domina and Socoma, also investigated for exploitation, raised wages by up to 40% after a police raid. Fema did not comply, leaving workers with monthly net salaries around €600. A judicial administrator will now regularize employment contracts. The case reignites debate on cultural worker exploitation in Italy. A 2023 survey by Mi Riconosci found half of cultural workers earn under €10,000 annually; 54% say pay is insufficient. In 2024, strikes hit MUSE in Trento, Milan's Pinacoteca di Brera at Palazzo Citterio, and Musei Civici di Milano. Sicilian ASU workers, employed for over 20 years at major cultural sites, are not recognized as employees. In Florence, 300 outsourced workers at Uffizi, Bargello, Galleria dell'Accademia, Pitti, and Officina delle Pietre Dure face a return to the Multiservizi contract after a new cooperative won the tender. Mi Riconosci expects more protests in 2025.