snow in Sicily

Here’s a good’un…

The comune of Palermo has a squad of snow clearers – who are paid handsomely when snow covers the ground.  One of their number, fearful for climate change presumably has wished so wholeheartedly for snow that it falls only for him.

This particular snow clearer presents his hours to the comune – except that after March there is no snow to be found in Sicily and his overtime comes to an end.  Our hero doesnt let a small meterological fact stand in his way, and continues to clear snow in his overtime hours, clocking in 17 hours in a mild April, and 53 in a rainy but tepid May.  By July (av temp 28 degrees the poor lamb was spending 38 hours sweating in the summer heat clearing the Palermitan snow, and by August with a rigid 35 degrees plus, he laboured through 200 hours of overtime clearing the snow from the road.

At this point some punctilious person from the council thought to query the payment.  And now — well the snow clearer is claiming unjust dismissal  and resitution of his overtime – Nobody had complained last year when he had claimed 117 hours of overtime in August and 80 in September to clear the snow, so he feels unjustly victimised.

The sad point of this story is that the court will not allow his dismissal and probably order him to be paid.   And that is why Italian labour laws need to be changed.

Author: rammers

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