MILAN (AFP)--Workers at the Fiat SpA (F.MI) plant of Termini
Imerese in Sicily went on strike for an hour and a half Monday,
fearing the closure of their plant should the Italian automaker
take over General Motors Corp (GM) German unit Opel, a union
official said.
The strike was called by three unions, the Fiom-CGIL, Fim and
Uilm, and half the morning shift responded as well as numerous
employees of sub-contractors, Roberto Mastrosimone, local head of
the Fiom-CGIL, said.
The Termini Imerese plant, which employs 1,700 people in total,
was resuming full production Monday after the Fiat workers had been
laid off for two weeks.
Mastrosimone said they had been on part-time working for five of
the last eight months, and they were protesting against the
possible closure of their plant.
Fiat's plans remain unclear in the event of it taking over the
European activities of General Motors, including Opel, raising
strong concerns over job losses in Italy and Germany.
The head of Fiat, Sergio Marchionne, said he would favor
reducing production in its factories instead of simply closing
them, according to the current edition of The Economist weekly.
But according to a document submitted to the German government
by Fiat and cited by Dow Jones Newswires and German daily
Handelsblatt, Fiat could close sites in Germany, Italy, the U.K.
and Austria if it took over Opel.
Italian unions, who are to meet their German colleagues in
Frankfurt Wednesday, are particularly worried over Termini Imerese
and the Pomigliano plant, near Naples.
Delegates from Termini Imerese will join a national
demonstration of Fiat workers Saturday, near the headquarters of
the group in Turin.