Bimbo representatives transmitted this Wednesday to the Works Council the decision to close the Valladolid plant on December 31 of this year, even if this date It could be extended until February 28 to proceed with the dismantling of the plant. In this sense, they alleged that the closure is due to “organizational and technical” causes due to the reduction in the volume of orders for certain products throughout Spain, which is why the company intends to concentrate production to be more efficient. . No economic issues were discussed at the meeting.
This was stated by the president of the works council and union leader of CCOO, Félix Fernández, after the first meeting with the company management to establish the negotiating committee for the employment regulation file (ERE). The social part, he insisted, maintains “hope” and commits to maintaining the employment of the 166 direct workers at the plantfor which they will try to convince the company of its viability.
For now, after the meeting held this Wednesday in a hotel in Valladolid, the parties have scheduled another meeting of the commission, which will take place the week of October 2 or 3. Since then, they plan to maintain contacts in a “more continuous” way to address what is included in the report that the company delivered this Wednesday to union representatives, since Bimbo’s managers have not delved into the causes of the closure, nor towards the destination of the production, collects Ical.
They were also not informed of Bimbo’s plans for the workers concerned due to the closure of the Valladolid plant. However, the staff representatives have announced that they will use all the “pressure measures” at their disposal to exert pressure and try to change the company’s mind. Finally, they do not rule out mobilizations throughout the country, given the restructuring process undertaken by the group.
Among these measures, there is a a possible call for a strike and a meeting at the Labor Relations Department of Castilla y León (Serla) because “he sees no justification” for the reasons that the company gives the order to close the factory. During this first negotiation, in which the human resources management of Bimbo España, Bimbo Valladolid and the company’s lawyer participated, the works council did not propose to move the workers because it did not see any reasons indicating that the operation of the factory is not viable.
The workers’ representatives, five from CCOO and four from the UGT, will continue their struggle to avoid this closure and, for the moment, they will study the report that the company has given them. The next meetings framed in the ERE negotiation will take place on October 1 and 2.
