Though chief executive Sergio Marchionne was once treated as a hero, when he managed to save Fiat from the brink of bankruptcy back in 2005, turned the company around and bought a stake in Chrysler, his recent decision to shut down the Italian’s automaker Termini Imerese factory in Sicily brought him a lot of criticism.
As a response to the Termini Imerese factory’s complete shut down, the workers called for a four-hour strike next Wednesday. Then Fiat’s response came in the form of an announcement that the Italian automaker will terminate all production throughout Italy for two weeks, starting February 22, due to the lack of orders.
This measure will temporarily lay off 30,000 workers, so the Unions see it as “fuel on the fire”, says Guglielmo Epifani, secretary general of Italy's largest labor union CGIL. The Unions also stated that Machionne’s drastic measure is meant to force the Italian government to extend the scrappage scheme.
The reality shows that Fiat suffered some serious losses in 2009. The automaker said that the only way it could return to profit this year is with the help of scrappage schemes throughout Europe. The decision to temporarily shut down production was also criticized by Claudio Scajola, economic development minister.
"We are the biggest investor in Italy but we are not the government," said Marchionne, dismissing all accusations.
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