OPERA NAZIONALE ASSISTENZA RELIGIOSA MORALE OPERAI (O.N.A.R.M.O.)
It is a work of religious and social apostolate among workers. Founded in August 1926, ONARMO, from its very origins, placed itself under the high patronage of the Sacred Congregation of the Consistory, which appoints its general director. The central organization of ONARMO consists of the General Directorate in Rome, from which branch out to the periphery 18 regional delegations, 127 diocesan delegations, and 14 compartmental delegations.
The characteristic activity of ONARMO consists in the religious service provided by labor chaplains, who carry out their apostolate within factories, construction sites, offices, and mines; in the fields, at railway stations, in the large villages of farm laborers, and at shepherds' stations. The labor chaplains, with their daily presence among workers, preach Christ simply and strive to bring His truth and grace to souls. They foster the formation of St. Vincent de Paul Worker Conferences within factories, establish the apostolate of prayer among workers, and offer them the Worker Retreat Movement, in addition to the common celebration of Holy Easter and liturgical solemnities.
In coordination with this apostolate, ONARMO carries out, in the same environments, a complex social, educational, health, and economic activity aimed at workers, making available to them numerous services. These are: 1) The social service, entrusted to social workers who operate both in factories and in workers' neighborhoods, agricultural and pastoral centers, applying current techniques of the "individual case" and "group work." 2) The health service, which supplements that of public institutions, provided through specialized units: the Labor Polyclinic in Rome, the Workers' Hospital in Triggiano (Bari), the Convalescent Home in Biandronno, and permanent and summer colonies for workers and workers' children. 3) Adult education, conducted in workshops and peripheral neighborhoods in Rome and Apulia through popular schools, managed under the supervision of the Provveditori degli studi. 4) Vocational training, organized in collaboration with the Ministry of Labor through retraining courses and school-workshops established in Lazio, Apulia, Sicily, and Sardinia. 5) Finally, the group of economic services that aim to improve the diet of the working classes, with company canteens and refectories in factories, popular canteens in cities for the unemployed, and inexpensive restaurants for the general public. ONARMO carries out similar welfare activities in Belgium, in Brussels, in the coal mines of Charleroi, Mons, Houtrage, and Liège, where it has established thriving centers for Italian miners.
For the preparation and updating of qualified personnel to carry out the aforementioned activities, ONARMO relies on specialized institutes, which are: a) the Seminary of Santa Cristina, for the training of labor chaplains in Bologna; b) the Higher Schools of Social Assistance in Rome and Bari and the Sissel ONARMO School of Social Service and Labor Experts in Naples; c) the ONARMO Social Workers Association to deepen and enhance the profession in the light of the Gospel, in the study of social problems.