- The car manufacturer has previously said it’s committed to building over 1 million vehicles annually in Italy.
- Stellantis may end 2024 having built just 500,000 vehicles in the country, 25% fewer than last year.
- In a statement, the brand said it “is committed to finding “shared solutions to address the challenges regarding the automotive sector.”
Metal workers at Stellantis will go on strike on October 18 in protest of falling production across the country. The strike comes on the back of a slow first half for the car conglomerate.
The local FIM-CISL union, which represents many Stellantis workers, asserts that the company may end 2024 having built just over 500,000 vehicles in Italy. This would represent a 25% decline from the 751,000 manufactured locally in 2023. Workers from FIM-CISL, as well as the FIOM union, have been put on furlough programs during recent production pauses triggered by weak market demand.
Read: Stellantis Tells UAW To Step Up Or Shut Up
Stellantis wants to increase annual production in Italy to 1 million units a year by the end of the decade, a commitment it made more than 12 months ago. However, production has gone backward since then, and speaking at a recent press conference, Rocco Palombella from UILM described the situation as “bad, very bad.”
The unions have called for a one-day strike on October 18 for metal workers at Stellantis, as well as its local suppliers.
Car production in Italy has not exceeded 1 million vehicles in a single year since 2017, well before FCA’s merger with the PSA Group in 2021. Stellantis made less than 700,000 units in 2022 and 2021 and, at one stage, had expected to end 2023 with 800,000 vehicles built. It fell short of those estimations.
In a statement issued to AP, Stellantis said it is committed to finding “shared solutions to address the challenges regarding the automotive sector.”
“We are confident that close collaboration with trade unions and the Italian government will allow us to find effective and sustainable solutions for our common future, transforming this crisis into an opportunity,” the company added.
