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Benetton Sees First Strike in Over 30 Years as Workers Protest 90% Solidarity Contracts

Unions demand talks over 90% hour cuts imposed without consultation.

Overview

  • About 350 of roughly 800 employees at the Castrette di Villorba plant walked out for two hours, with unions planning actions across later shifts and projecting participation near 70%.
  • The protest targets Benetton’s unilateral decision to place around 80 workers on 90% solidarity contracts, communicated by email only days before taking effect.
  • The measure leaves those employees working roughly one day in ten through 31 December under a scheme approved earlier this year.
  • Union groups say they accept solidarity tools but want rotation across staff and a cap on reductions near 50%, and they have requested a meeting with CEO Claudio Sforza.
  • During the demonstration the company barred media access to the plant yard, and the dispute follows roughly 400 recent exits and the suspension of voluntary severance options.