Due to reduced activity in the aviation industry caused by the coronavirus pandemic, the Belišće-based company Leistritz, which processes turbine blades for aircraft, does not have enough work and must lay off workers. However, thanks to the collective agreement won through the strike in September 2018, the Novi sindikat was able to negotiate the terms of employment contract cancellations and the return to work, as well as protect a portion of the workforce from dismissal.
Representatives of the employer, the German company Leistritz Turbine Components, informed us of the reduced scope of work due to decreased activity in the airline industry and their plan to lay off some workers. They stated that state measures for job preservation are insufficient because they have very few orders; however, they intend to keep the factory for future investment, retaining 22 out of 80 workers.
Although the situation is poor, Novi sindikat insisted that several steps be taken before any cancellations:
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To determine for which specific jobs there is an excess of workers.
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To carry out scoring in accordance with the collective agreement and create a surplus list accordingly (e.g., points for social status, performance).
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To ensure that cancellation criteria are also used as criteria for re-employment when orders begin to arrive again.
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To exclude the Union commissioner and members of the Workers’ Council from dismissal.
The above was agreed upon through an annex to the collective agreement, which has the same duration as the agreement itself. When the employer looks for workers again, they will first have to hire those from the established points list who were previously employed in the required positions. The employer informed the workers of this agreement at a meeting held on August 13. In addition, the employer stated that all conditions prescribed by the collective agreement or labor law were retained and that laid-off workers would be paid the prescribed severance pay.
We would add that in this situation, the importance of trade union organization and collective agreements becomes even clearer. Through the strike in September 2018, we won an increase in the wage base (and arranged a number of other material rights), which means workers will now receive higher severance payments and higher compensation at the employment office. Also, if the collective agreement had not been signed, we would not have been able to negotiate the terms of the cancellations, and we have successfully protected our Union commissioner and members of the Workers’ Council.
We hope that the crisis will end as soon as possible, that the aviation industry will recover, and that the company will soon hire workers again.
