A meeting was held today in Rome between the unions and Leonardo representatives, in the persons of the aerostructures division manager, Stefano Bortoli, and the Leonardo HR manager, Antonio Liotti, on the situation of the Leonardo plant in Grottaglie affected by the crisis of the client Boeing. “In the meeting we received information that outlines potential positivity, but at the same time we register elements that still see a distance especially in the method”, explain Bruno Cantonetti, national secretary of Uilm, and Davide Sperti, leader of Uilm Taranto.
“As an important novelty for the Apulian site, following the confirmation of what is already in planning albeit in the embryonic and prototype phase, the arrival of the final line of the AW609 convertiplane has been announced. This is a project of the helicopter division that has both government and private customers: an aircraft that is in the certification phase. Mass production has not started and there is a desire to bring it to the Grottaglie site. It is news that we welcome positively and that really demonstrates the start of a real transformation of the site”..
“The negative note – underline Cantonetti and Sperti – is that Leonardo wants to confirm again the suspension of activity for four months at the Grottaglie site, again due to the need to reduce the fuselage production buffer created, therefore the production carried out for the warehouse in the past months and years. On this issue, we confirm our opposition also because Boeing’s new Z60 production plan, which provides for five withdrawals per month, currently allows the possibility of foreseeing a reduction in activities without suspending them”.
“We believe that on this point too we can find a different solution – they add – which does not involve the suspension of activities, but a solution that meets the needs of keeping the site open and protecting all workers, including those in related industries without any distinction between people. We ask – they conclude – for a solution that on the one hand manages to reconcile the need to dispose of warehouse production and recover spaces also useful for diversification and on the other meets the needs of continuing to work, albeit in a reduced manner. Today’s meeting ended with a commitment to update the table within a week.”
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