19 September, 2018Ilva Group workers - members of the IndustriALL affiliates Fim-Cisl, Fiom-Cgil and Uilm-Uil – voted by a very large majority of 93 per cent to approve the new agreement concluded on 6 September between the Ministry of Economic Development, trade unions and ArcelorMittal.
Over the last week assemblies with participation by all the workers of the group took place. At the assemblies, workers were informed about the contents of the agreement and voted for its ratification. To a large extent, workers voted for a deal with the company, which if accepted could open the door for acquisition and immediate operation of the plant.
In total, Fim-Cisl, Fiom-Cgil and Uilm-Uil representing some 14,000 workers of the Ilva group in Italy, organized 44 assemblies at all the sites, respectively: 32 in Taranto, 3 in Genoa, 4 in Novi Ligure, and one each in the sites of Marghera, Salerno, Padua, Milan and Racconigi.
According to the agreement reached, 4.2 billion euro of investments are planned for the revival of the steel industry, including 1.25 billion euros for industrial purposes, 1.15 billion euros for the environment and 1.8 billion euro as part of the acquisition. Also, the Government will use 1.2 billion euros seized from the previous owner, Riva group for a decontamination programme and environmental improvements at the Taranto site. Due to the environmental problems and following announced seizure of the resources, the Ilva group and particularly Taranto site was in jeopardy since July 2012.
The steel company committed to initially employ 10,700 workers. The unions explained that according to the agreement there was no job cuts foreseen. Workers who are not immediately employed, or agreed to voluntary departure or redeployment programmes, would be offered employment before 2023, when the programme of decontamination is over. The remaining few thousand of excess workers will be employed through the decontamination programme.
All problems are not however solved by this agreement. On the basis of the European anti-monopoly legislation, ArcelorMittal will divest a number of its smaller European sites located in Galati (Romania), Ostrava (Czech Republic), Skopje (Macedonia), Piombino (Italy), Dudelange (Luxemburg) and Liège (Belgium).