Whirlpool, is it really game over? The FIRSTonline scoop that revealed the task assigned by the multinational to its executive vice president and president of Whirlpool Emea, Gilles Morel, to close the operation of divestment of EMEA assets (Europe plus Africa and the Middle East) by and no later than June 30, 2024 strongly alarms the trade unions. This was declared by the national secretary of the Fim-Cisl Massimiliano Nobis, recalling that the unitary coordination of End, Fiom, Uilm already last May he first requested a meeting with the Whirlpool EMEA management (in the light of declarations in the press by Gilles Morel himself, he was already envisaging a strategic review of the group in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, with the possibility of maintaining the activities but also, a sale of the same or hybrid options) and then to the Minister of Economic Development, Giancarlo Giorgetti.
“We have had only silence from both of us – said the trade unionist -. In July the trade union delegations of the 5 establishments Italian Whirlpools, which employ more than 5.000 workers, have brought to the attention of the territorial Prefects the dramatic employment scenario that could cause the sale of industrial assets by Whirlpool. The prefects have taken it upon themselves to urge the MiSE to convene the table, but to date nothing yet ".
Fim: "The silence of the electoral campaign is worrying"
"In recent years, the European division of the multinational has already decommissioned three sites, penalizing the European industrial value of the group", explains the secretary, recalling "the unfortunate story" of the plant in Whirlpool of Naples, the agreement for the transfer of all production and commercial activities in Russia and Kazakhstan last June to the Turkish rival group Arçelik. But also the virtual decommissioning of a plant, given the number of workers involved, i.e. the entire clerical sector, mainly in the strategic areas of research and quality, of Cassinetta and Fabriano in Italy with 300 exits. “The silence of the electoral campaign on the country's industrial prospects is worrying – attacks Nobis -. The resources of the Pnrr they must be destined not only to support new industrial projects but also to strengthen those industrial fabrics in which our country maintains a strong leadership among these there is certainly the white goods sector, which still represents a productive sector of excellence.
Fim: "The Mise urgently convene the discussion table"
This is why we urgently ask for a ministerial table that defines and clarifies if and how the transfer plan will take place. We want guarantees not only on maintaining employment in all Italian production sites and employee bodies, but also to define the resources to support investments in industrial processes and product development.
