Italy eyes better relations with Stellantis after automaker saves supplier jobs

Logitech International SA

10/12/2024 18:14

ROME, Dec 10 (Reuters) - Italy's Industry Minister
Adolfo Urso announced a deal on Tuesday to avert 249 layoffs at
suppliers to Stellantis  STLAM.MI , saying he hoped the
breakthrough would help repair strained relations with the
carmaker.
    Stellantis and Italy's government have been at loggerheads
for months, with politicians in Rome accusing Fiat's parent
company and its CEO Carlos Tavares of neglecting historic
Italian manufacturing sites and moving production abroad.
    But a top Stellantis manager said on Monday, days after the
sudden departure of Tavares, that he would present a clear plan
to revive output in Italy at a meeting on the Italian automotive
industry Urso is set to host on Dec. 17 in Rome.
    On Tuesday, the minister said he brokered a deal whereby
Stellantis agreed to extend a contract for another year with its
logistics supplier Trasnova, which would otherwise have fired 97
people at the end of the month.
    A further 152 jobs at two of Trasnova's subcontractors -
Logitech and Tecnoservice - which were also set to be lost at
the end of the year, have been saved thanks to the contract
extension. 
    The deal "represents a concrete sign of responsibility at a
crucial time for the automotive sector," Urso said. "I hope it
will also mark the start of a new and productive path with
Stellantis", he added. 
    In a separate statement, the Franco-Italian carmaker said it
had acted responsibly and would continue its efforts to
safeguard jobs at its Italian operations while dealing with the
challenge of the electric transition. 
    Unions said the 12-month reprieve for the workers facing
layoffs should be used to find longer-term solutions for the
Italian auto sector, including at the meeting due to take place
at Urso's ministry next week. 

 (Reporting by Alvise Armellini  Editing by Giselda Vagnoni and
Mark Potter)
 ((alvise.armellini@thomsonreuters.com;))