-ROMA (ITALPRESS) – Today, during the meeting at the Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy, Electrolux Group presented the industrial and organizational plan for Italy, illustrating the strategic direction of optimization and an estimate of the impacts foreseen for each site. The plan, explains the company, is determined by a particularly complex market environment in Europe, characterized by a stagnant demand, a strong pressure on prices and structural cost disadvantages compared to other global production areas, which require targeted actions to strengthen competitiveness and ensure sustainability over the long term. Electrolux Group reiterates that “Italy remains a strategic country, with a consolidated manufacturing presence in different plants and a constant contribution in product development, as evidenced by significant investments made, over 750 million euros in the last 10 years in production, automation and product innovation”. Electrolux Group, concludes the note, has confirmed its commitment to continue the comparison in compliance with the appropriate procedures and to continue the dialogue with all stakeholders.
“I ask the company to withdraw the plan presented today at the table and to open a real confrontation, to build together a shared and sustainable industrial solution. It serves a new industrial plan based on investment and innovation, protection of plants and safeguarding employment. We’re ready to do our part. Even in the most difficult crises we can reach an agreement that avoids dismissals, keep the plants open and give productive perspective. We proved it with Beko. Also in this case we work together, with responsibility. We need a new plan that doesn’t leave anyone behind. We will never accept the industrial desertification of Europe. Our priority is to protect workers and relaunch the national industry.” This is what the Minister of Business and Made in Italy, Adolfo Urso, would say, according to what is learned, by replicating the company at the Electrolux table in progress at Mimit.
“Asian unfair competition is jeopardizing an essential industrial chain for Europe, the electrodomestic industry. On Thursday, in Brussels, I will bring the matter to the attention of the European Union’s Competitiveness Council, starting from the comparison with the ministers of the countries still more involved in the European production of the sector. There is no longer time to lose: the Commission listens to us, recognizes this sector as strategic and, like the automotive, prepares a Plan for the sector, which includes the revision of CBAM with the extension to these goods, reciprocity in standards and support tools, also European to productive investments and demand,” he added. “Well Confindustria has reported what is the real problem: the Electrolux dispute is not a crisis limited to individual plants, but it concerns the entire European electrodomestic industry. I share this analysis, as well as I share APPLiA’s appeal for the declaration of strategicity of the sector – it would have emphasized Urso –. It can start immediately, even in the Industrial Accelerator Act now to the attention of the Council and of the European Parliament: for this reason I appeal to the Italian political groups in the European Parliament to act together, in a bipartisan way, to insert the electrodomestic among the European strategic sectors”.
LE REAZIONI DEI SINDACATI
“The Electrolux dispute represents a moment of deep crisis for the electrodomestic sector and for the entire Italian manufacturing sector, configuring itself as a real national emergency.” This is what Cisl and Fim Cisl underline in a joint note. “The hard confrontation between the Swedish multinational, the institutions and the trade unions highlights the complexity of a situation that directly affects the social and economic fabric of five Italian regions. The reorganization plan presented by the company outlines a strong reorganization of its historical presence in the country through the forecast of 1,700 total esuberi, a figure that would affect 35% of the workers and 43% of the employees, to which are added the total closure of the Marche factory of Cerreto d’Esi and a drastic reduction of the estimated production volumes around 30%. This scenario has compacted the face of refusal, bringing the Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy, the Regions involved and the unions to declare the plan completely unacceptable,” says Cisl and Fim Cisl. The Secretary-General of Fim Cisl, Ferdinando Uliano, openly denounced how “the operation does not config a relaunch or restructuring, but a real industrial dismantling based on purely financial logic that penalize the research, development and organization itself of the work”. In parallel, the confederal secretary of Cisl, Giorgio Graziani, highlighted how “the crisis of competitiveness and the strong pressure of Asian and Chinese markets demand structural responses no longer postponed, calling for urgent and concrete industrial policies both at Italian and European level to protect and stem extra-European competition. The objective of the institutional table is therefore to push the multinational to the immediate withdrawal of the plan and dismissals, to start a negotiation that safeguards the occupation and the manufacturing heritage of the country. At the invitation of Minister Urso, the table was convened next June 15th”.
“Today we were unanimous, union, government and interested regions, in asking Electrolux to withdraw the current plan and present a new one, which does not foresee closures and dismissals. We urge the multinational to present itself, already at the next meeting of June 15, with a completely different attitude.” This is what the confederal secretary of the Uil, Vera Buonomo, and the secretary general of the Uilm, Rocco Palombella declared. “We do not agree to discuss a plan that provides for the closure of Cerreto d’Esi, the cessation of the production of laundries in Porcia and gas hob in Forlì, as well as exsuberi in the other factories of Susegana and Solaro and in the offices, for a total of 1719 surpluses, of which 994 among the workers and 725 among the staff functions, to which it is necessary to add 210 workers at term with contract Electrolux – they have emphasized Buonomo and Palombella – is a dispute not only serious in itself, but also emblematic of a situation of objective difficulty in the field and of socially irresponsible behavior. If Electrolux does not change her attitude, we believe that she should be asked by the government to return everything she has received as a public incentive in recent years. At the same time, we think that in order to preserve the household appliances sector over the long term, the competitiveness knots should be faced, starting from the cost of energy and the European CBAM legislation. The common goal – concluded Buonomo and Palombella – must be to induce Electrolux to withdraw the current plan and present a new industrial plan.”.
– photo IPA Agency –
(ITALPRESS).
