Occupation of factories

Occupation of factories is a method of the workers' movement used to prevent lock outs. They may sometimes lead to "recovered factories", in which the workers self-manage the factories.

They have been used in many strike actions, including:

the 1919–20 Biennio Rosso (in particular the Turin factory occupation of 1920)
1936 French general strike (see 1936 Matignon agreements)
in the May 68 revolts, supported by the Council for Maintaining the Occupations
in the 1970s in Italy (35-day occupation of the Fiat)
Upper Clyde Shipbuilders workers staged a work-in during 1971–72 with about 260 further occupations in Britain in the following decade
the 1971 Harco work-in, Australia^[1]
1973 Uruguayan general strike
Lip factory in France in 1973
the occupation of the ceramics factory formerly known as Zanon in Argentina starting in 2001, that under workers' control changed its name to FaSinPat
the occupation of the Republic Windows and Doors factory in Chicago in 2008, and the re-occupation of the factory in 2012
A 77-day occupation of the Ssangyong car factory in 2009^[2]
Current occupation of Viomichaniki Metalleutiki in Thessaloniki, Greece, along the lines of factory occupations in Argentina.^[3]
Current occupation of the GKN drive shaft manufacturing factory in Campi Bisenzio, Italy following the lay-offs of 422 employees on July 9, 2021.^[4]

^ McIntyre, Iain (2022-03-23). "Australian Actions at Different Points of Intervention". The Commons Social Change Library. Retrieved 2024-08-12.
^ "S Korea factory occupation ends". BBC News. 2009-08-06. Retrieved 2010-02-12.
^ Flanders, Laura (15 February 2013). "Greek Workers Take Over a Factory [Video Interview]". The Nation.
^ Gabbriellini, Francesca; Gabbuti, Giacomo (10 August 2022). "How Striking Auto Workers Showed Italy the Way Out of Decline". Jacobin.