I keep hearing about workplace related deaths in the Italian news, such as a factory fire in Turin in which several men died. Later, it was revealed that the only extinguishers on-site were empty! Every week there seems to be a new workplace tragedy in which lax safety regulations are to blame. Today I heard of an incident in Puglia, so I finally asked, ‘Is it just me, or is workplace safety a big problem in Italy?’

‘No, no, you are absolutely right,’ Angelo replied. (His manner of agreeing is a little confusing until you get used to it.) ‘Italy is way behind the states as far as workplace safety goes.’ I told him this surprised me, and asked if he’d ever heard about the female textile workers who died in a fire in New York City back in the early 1900’s. He said no.

So I explained that my mom told me about the fire when I was kid, and I never forgot because it was so horrifying. ‘The conditions were atrocious, practically slavery,’ I told Angelo. ‘When the fire broke out, the women could not get out of the building because their boss had locked them inside, so they burned to death. Luckily, the incident was widely reported, and other women went on strike. Their slogan was, ‘We want bread, but we want roses, too,’ meaning that they wanted to make a living wage, and have some beauty in their lives, as well. After that, a lot of reforms happened. They didn’t happen overnight, but workplace safety is a big deal in the states.’

Gradually, our conversation turned to other things, and in a twist of synchronicity, Angelo mentioned, ‘Today is La Festa della Donna. Have you heard of it?’ I hadn’t, so he went on to explain that every March 8th, Italian men give mimosa flowers to the important women in their life. ‘Sounds like something I should blog about,’ I said.

But when I looked up the origins of this holiday, I was surprised to see that it was inspired by, and occurs on the anniversary of, that very same textile factory fire in 1908, which just so happens to be today, March 8th! Many of the seamstresses who perished were Italian immigrants, which explains why it caught on over here, but it’s popular in other European countries, too. In fact, in Britain, the concept of ‘bread and roses’ has morphed to include ‘cocktails and strippers’ for many women, who celebrate by going out on rowdy ‘hen nights’ with their pals rather than waiting around for flowers.

Oddly, though, La Festa della Donna is not celebrated in the USA. When I mentioned this to Angelo, he said, ‘That’s because Walmart still keeps their employees locked inside.’