The text will have to be voted by workers in referendum

It lasts for five years

The management of the Opel plant in Figueruelas and the representation of the workers yesterday achieved a pre-agreement agreement, and, therefore, on the future activity of the Zaragoza factory. The pact will be submitted today to a referendum of the employees and will be valid for five years. The PSA group, parent of Opel, had conditioned in an ultimatum the investments in the plant to labor circumstances that guaranteed the profitability of the brand.

The pre-agreement implies a wage freeze for 2018. Rises of 50% of the CPI in 2019 and 2020, and 60% in the following two years. It also means the reduction of certain bonuses, such as the nocturnal bonus or a new contracting policy. All this is conditioned to the development of an industrial plan at this time by the company and to use the plant at full capacity.

“The negotiation has required great effort and understanding on both sides. The agreement reached establishes a framework to improve the competitiveness of the plant, an essential condition to be able to aspire to new investments and models within the PSA Group, the only way to maintain employment and look to the future “, defended the company in a note issued yesterday by the night.
In this context, the management of the company appealed to the responsibility of “all employees” to support the pre-agreement signed by the management of Opel Spain and the majority of the works council.

The pre-agreement has been achieved on the campaign, within the deadline set by the negotiators, which expired yesterday. On January 22, the unions suspended the negotiations – which had begun in October – until the management agreed to discuss five points that they had marked as priorities. Among them was an industrial plan to ensure the viability of the plant in the coming years.

In response, PSA announced the stoppage of the plan to manufacture the new Opel Corsa in Figueruelas. And he ruled out any new investment in the plant. The company’s first proposal was to reduce salaries by 6% in 2018 and keep them frozen until 2022.
The dialogue between the automobile and the workers’ representatives was only renewed after the mediation of the Government of Aragon. The two parties returned to sit down to negotiate this weekend.

This agreement is the first that the firm faces after its purchase by PSA last year. The French group tries to apply in Opel the rules it executed in its banner in 2014, after the state rescue, to return to profitability. The automotive PSA, owner of the Peugeot, Citroën, DS and Opel brands, sold 311,673 vehicles in the Spanish market during the past year. It represents a growth of 5.8% more compared to the volume registered in 2016.

This volume represents a share of 21.72% in Spain among its four brands (Peugeot, Citroën, Opel and DS). According to the car, PSA “led the market in Spain with a penetration in the market two points above the next group”. The French company was also the first by volume of sales in the commercial vehicle segment, with a share of 32.9%.

Á.B. FIVE DAYS – 29 JAN 2018  (Translation Soft)