Seat’s management has raised the issue with the unions a plan of early retirements to manage the surplus of jobs which will mean the mass production of the electric vehicle that would apply from the age of 61 on a voluntary basis, which would affect around 1,130 workers.
The automotive industry has raised this proposal to the works committee in the course of the negotiation of new collective agreement, as reported by both the unions and the management.
Specifically, direct workers from the age of 61 and indirect workers from the age of 62 could be included in the plan, and will involve a suspension of the contract until the age of 65, when retirement would begin.
Seat has pointed out that this retirement program, which is framed in the period 2022-2026, “it will help minimize staff redundancy and adjust the workforce to the company’s transformation process”, while guaranteeing “a sustainable business model”. The ultimate goal, as he pointed out, is “to prepare for electromobility and to have a more agile and flexible structure to meet our future challenges”.
CCOO and UGT have welcomed the proposal, considering that it makes it possible to guarantee access to a “decent” retirement, although they have pointed out that the specific conditions will need to be negotiated. During the meeting of the agreement, Seat has also committed to the workers to pay the delays due to the delayed inflation of 2021 in a single payment.