Cost-Cutting Means Fewer Toilets in at Least One of Fiat's Italian Plants
In the wake of the merger between FCA (Fiat Chrysler Automobiles) and PSA (Peugeot Société Anonyme), one thing has been heard repeatedly in discussions: the need to cut costs, and at all levels.
Carlos Tavares, the CEO of the Stellantis group that was born from the marriage of the two companies, said that the automaker would not cut jobs or close plants, but would still aim to save more than 5 billion Euros per year after the merger.
To do this, it seems that nothing is off-limits. And that, according to unions, includes reducing cleaning services and even the number of toilets available to workers in Fiat's Italian plants.
Carlos Tavares added that production costs in Italian plants are up to four times higher than in the automaker's facilities in France or Spain.
Davide Provenzano of the FIM (Federazione Italiana Metalmeccanici), a grouping of 23 unions in Italy, said Stellantis was taking action at its Mirafiori plant. The Mirafiori plant is located in Turin and is responsible for building the Fiat New 500, a fully electric car. The measures include reducing the number of toilets available to workers, cutting back on cleaning crews and lowering temperatures, as well as reorganizing transportation-related facilities.
Read more