Volvo is to lay off a total of 213 workers in Tampere. The Swedish automotive company is closing its bus body plant in Tampere and moving its production to Poland. Work at the Tampere unit will cease at the end of August.
In addition, in Lieto, near Turku, 24 people will lose their jobs. There Volvo is restructuring its production. Around 250 employees will remain with the company.
Around twenty of those being made redundant are of an age where they may end up on unemployment pensions.
The trade unions are requesting considerable redundancy payments for those losing their jobs, but Volvo has refused to pay any. According to the unions, the severance pay would come in handy especially for those who will find it hard to land a new job because of their age.
The statutory co-determination negotiations between staff and management ended on Tuesday. The workers organised a demonstration in Tampere in the afternoon.
More than a hundred Volvo Bus Finland personnel took part in the Tampere protest march, which was organised in the form of a funeral procession.
The sentiments of the demonstrators varied from silent anger to deep disappointment.
The Tampere factory has struggled with various cost-cutting programmes for some time.
The quality of the products has received praise, and the order books have been full, but still the employer announced that the production would be transferred to Poland. In Poland one is able to hire unskilled workers for less than EUR 800 per month.
The suggested change of ownership of the Tampere factory foundered on Volvo’s decision not to grant a licence for the manufacturing of its coachwork.
More than half of the workers being made redundant have worked for Volvo for over ten years. The most faithful ones have remained with the same employer for 40 years.
Volvo is willing to pay the personnel a compensation of over EUR one million for the shut-down of the factory, but the company fails to feel responsible for the subsistence of those left without work.
The unions representing the workers will continue their fight over severance pay and they will meet with the Volvo Group trustees in Stockholm next week.
