Luca Visentini
General Secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation
In office
21 November 2022 – 11 March 2023
Preceded bySharan Burrow
Succeeded byLuc Triangle
Personal details
Born1969 (age 54–55)
Udine, Italy
Alma materUniversity of Trieste
ProfessionTrade unionist

Luca Visentini (born 1969) is an Italian trade unionist. Elected general secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) at the organisation's 5th World Congress in Melbourne, Australia, in mid-November 2022, he stood aside on 14 December 2022 following his arrest and conditional release in relation to the Qatar corruption scandal at the European Parliament.[1][2][3][4] On 11 March 2023, the ITUC General Council voted to dismiss Visentini for accepting funds from Antonio Panzeri.[5][6]

He was previously the General Secretary of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC). He was reelected at the ETUC Congress in Vienna in May 2019, having been first elected in 2015. He has been active in the European trade union movement since the late 1980s, at regional, national and European Union levels.[7]

Background

After studying philosophy at the University of Trieste, in 1989, he joined the Unione Italiana de Lavoro (UIL), initially taking responsibility for the union’s youth work. In the same year he was selected as General Secretary of UIL’s Federation for Tourism, Trade and Services in Friuli Venezia Giulia.[8]

In 1996, he became General Secretary of UIL in Friuli Venezia Giulia and a member of the union’s national steering and executive committees, as well as General Secretary of the UIL Confederal Chamber of Labour of Trieste. His work covered a wide range of issues including collective bargaining and wages, social dialogue, industrial, labour market and economic policy, social security and public services, as well as communications and human resource management.

The following year, he became active at the European level as President of the Inter-Regional Trade Union Council (IRTUC) linking Friuli Venezia Giulia, Veneto and Croatia, and a member of the ETUC IRTUCs Coordination Committee. From 2007-2011 he was committee Vice-President and served on the ETUC's Economic and Employment Committee.

European Trade Union Confederation, 2011–2022

Visentini was elected as ETUC Confederal Secretary at the 12th ETUC Congress in Athens in May 2011. His responsibilities included: Collective bargaining and wage policy; Migration and mobility; Education and training; EU budget, structural funds, economic and social cohesion, regional policy; IRTUCs and the EURES Network.

He took part and coordinated workers’ group activities in the European Social Fund Committee; Structured Dialogue for the European Structural and Investment Funds; Advisory Committee for Free Movement of Workers; Directors General Committee for Vocational Education and Training; Advisory Committee for Vocational Education and Training; and Integration Forum for Migrants.

Since the ETUC Congress in Paris (October 2015), following his election[9] as ETUC General Secretary, he has also been General Secretary of PERC (Pan-European Regional Council), the ITUC regional organisation representing trade unions across the whole European continent. He was re-elected as General Secretary of the ETUC at Congress in Vienna, in May 2019.

International Trade Union Confederation, 2022–2023

Luca Visentini was elected as ITUC General Secretary at the 5th ITUC World Congress in Melbourne, Australia, 17–22 November 2022.[10]

Arrest

In December 2022, just days after being elected as General Secretary of ITUC, Visentini was arrested as part of the Qatar corruption scandal at the European Parliament in which Qatar had allegedly paid large sums of cash for influence at the European Parliament.[11][12] After two days in custody, Visentini was conditionally released.[4]

Other activities

Visentini was President of ISSES, UIL Trieste’s research institute for historical, economic and social studies (2006–2011), President of the Friuli Venezia Giulia branch of UIL’s vocational education and training provider ENFAP (2002–2006), and on the board of Italian International Research Centres Elettra-Sincrotrone and AREA Science Park.

Visentini is a poet and writer, publishing four books of poetry and novels between 2004 and 2012. He has headed cultural associations and networks in the fields of literature and theatre.

See also

Bibliography

  • Traduzioni perdute, Ibiskos, 2004
  • Corridoio 5, Racconti dal caffè di mezza Europa, Danilo Zanetti Editore, 2004
  • Goffi erotismi pagani, Ibiskos, 2007
  • Prima della rivoluzione, Lietocolle, 2012

References

  1. ↑ "ITUC World Congress: Luca Visentini new ITUC General Secretary". www.ituc-csi.org. International Trade Union Confederation. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
  2. ↑ "ITUC General Secretary". www.ituc-csi.org. International Trade Union Confederation. 15 December 2022. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
  3. ↑ Mansoor, Sanya (14 December 2022). "The Qatar Corruption Scandal Is Rocking E.U. Politics". Time. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
  4. 1 2 "La vice-présidente du Parlement européen Eva Kaili écrouée pour corruption, Luca Visentini libéré sous conditions" (in French). Le Soir. 11 December 2022. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  5. ↑ Ayuso, Silvia (2023-03-11). "El 'Qatargate' le cuesta el puesto al jefe de la Confederación Sindical Internacional". El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 2023-03-11.
  6. ↑ "ITUC General Council Meeting, March 11 2023". www.ituc-csi.org. Retrieved 2023-03-11.
  7. ↑ "Curriculum vitae Luca Visentini" (PDF). European Trade Union Confederation. Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 August 2016. Retrieved 22 August 2016.
  8. ↑ "Il triestino Visentini eletto segretario generale della Confederazione europea dei sindacati". Il Piccolo (in Italian). 2 October 2015.
  9. ↑ "Luca Visentini prend la tête de la CES" [Luca Visentini takes the helm of the ETUC]. Le Figaro (in French). 2 October 2015.
  10. ↑ "ITUC World Congress: Luca Visentini new ITUC General Secretary". congress2022.ituc-csi.org. 21 November 2022. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
  11. ↑ Wheaton, Saran (12 December 2022). "EU Parliament 'under attack' as Qatar corruption scandal grows". Politico Europe.
  12. ↑ "Info "Le Soir": le Qatar soupçonné de corruption en plein cœur de l'Europe" (in French). Le Soir. 12 December 2022. Retrieved 12 December 2022.

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