Italian Stellantis workers to strike on October 18 over

Local union describes Stellantis’ current Italian production as “bad, very bad”

Metal workers at Stellantis will strike on October 18 to protest against falling production across the country. The strike comes against the backdrop of a dismal first-half performance for the automotive group.

The local FIM-CISL union, which represents many of Stellantis’ workers, claims the company could produce just over 500,000 cars in Italy by the end of 2024. That would be a 25% drop from the 751,000 cars it expects to make in Italy in 2023. Both FIM-CISL and FIOM workers were furloughed during recent production halts due to weak market demand.

Read: Stellantis asks UAW to take action or shut up

Stellantis hopes to increase annual production in Italy to 1 million vehicles by 2020, a commitment the company made more than 12 months ago. However, production has been falling since then, and UILM’s Rocco Palombella said at a recent press conference that the situation is “very bad.”

The union called on Stellantis’ metal workers and its local suppliers to hold a one-day strike on October 18.

Italy hasn’t produced more than 1 million vehicles since 2017, well before FCA’s merger with PSA Group in 2021. Stellantis produced fewer than 700,000 vehicles in 2022 and 2021, and at one point expected to produce 800,000 vehicles by the end of 2023. It ultimately fell short of those expectations.

In a statement to The Associated Press, Stellantis said the company is committed to finding “joint solutions to the challenges facing the automotive industry.”

“We are confident that close collaboration with the unions and the Italian government will allow us to find effective and sustainable solutions for our common future, turning this crisis into an opportunity,” the company added.