New Stellantis layoffs mean over 3,000 jobs set to go in Italy

The gates of the Stellantis factory in Mirafiori, Turin, Italy. (Getty Images)

MILAN — Stellantis, the maker of Fiat cars, on Wednesday signed further deals with unions in Italy for voluntary layoffs, meaning the automaker could cut its workforce by a total of over 3,000 roles in the country.

New deals were reached on Wednesday for over 1,000 layoffs at facilities in Italy, including Melfi, Pomigliano d’Arco and Termoli, both for line workers and other functions, the FIOM union said in a statement, although it has not itself signed the agreements.

The cuts are being driven in part by the transition to cleaner energy in the industry.

They add to similar deals announced on Tuesday for Stellantis operations in the city of Turin, with as many as over 1,500 voluntary layoffs, and for the engine making facility in Pratola Serra, with 100 additional jobs involved.

A deal has not yet been signed for the Cassino plant, another large Stellantis assembly facility in Italy.

The company has proposed 850 voluntary redundancies for that site, FIOM had said on Tuesday, but a final deal with unions is expected to settle on a lower figure. Another agreement is expected to cover the Atessa van making plant in central Italy.

A spokesman for Stellantis confirmed the new deals signed on Wednesday, under a framework agreed with unions last week.

“They are part of the initiatives implemented by Stellantis to address the effects of the ongoing energy and technology transition process … including on employment,” the spokesman said.

They are on a strictly voluntary basis and mostly aimed at employees close to retirement age or willing to take new professional opportunities, the spokesman reiterated.

Stellantis employs about 43,000 people in Italy, including about 15,000 in the area of Turin, in Italy’s northwest, the historic home of Fiat, which merged with Peugeot-maker PSA to create Stellantis.

Voluntary redundancy packages have been the main tool used by Stellantis to cut its workforce in Italy, which amounted to around 55,000 people when the group was formed in early 2021.

The carmaker, which on Wednesday reiterated Italy had a central role to play in its global operations, is in talks with the Italian government on conditions allowing it to boost its annual output in the country to 1 million vehicles, from about 750,000 last year.