The Strikers

It's late nineteenth century Turin. Those working on the floor, which include men, women, and children, largely uneducated, lament the harsh working conditions at their employer, a textile factory. The fourteen hour work days with only a half hour lunch break have led to exhaustion, and a series of life threatening or at least life altering accidents. After each one of these accidents, the workers have only taken a collection for the affected family in that person often no longer being able to work while they complain among themselves about the harsh conditions the underlying cause of the accident. They decide the latest accident is the last straw, a small number forming a committee to address the issue, sometimes in direct talks with management, and when those talks have no effect, through more subversive means. Each tact they attempt seems to result in failure. Things change when Sig. Sinigaglia enters their midst. Running from the law in Genoa and thus penniless, he, a former Italian professor hence most using that honorific in addressing him, is hiding out when he meets the workers. An activist, he convinces them that the most effective means to deal with the issue is for a surprise strike, but not before they prepare themselves personally for a long layoff from work and no wages coming in. What happens as the strike progresses is affected by how each side thinks the other side is handling their economic upheaval, by the Professor's own personal situation, and by how each side decides to react to actions on the other side.