In May 2005 Ibm announced a European-scale restructuring plan entailing between 10,000 and 13,000 redundancies, a reorganisation of Ibm branches and the closure of some plants. The lack of clarity and transparency of the multinational company about the number of redundancies in Italy and about the future of the Italian plants caused the harsh reaction of the Italian trade union organisations.
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In May 2005 Ibm announced a European-scale restructuring plan entailing between 10,000 and 13,000 redundancies, a reorganisation of Ibm branches and the closure of some plants. The lack of clarity and transparency of the multinational company about the number of redundancies in Italy and about the future of the Italian plants caused the harsh reaction of the Italian trade union organisations.
The Ibm employs 13,500, 8,000 workers just in Italy, and has a turnover of about EUR 2.63 billion.
At the beginning of 2005 - according to the declarations made by Andrea Pontremoli, president and managing director of Ibm Italia- it seemed that the company was doing well and that it was ready to stake on the small and medium-seized companies characteristic of the Italian productive fabric in order to expand its production. But, the situation has suddenly worsened so much that the company has announced a restructuring plan at European and Italian level with severe occupational drawbacks (between 10,000 and 13,000 redundancies in Europe).
According to Ibm 'costs are to elevated and growth perspectives very reduced. The main objective of the restructuring plan is to streamline Ibm managerial and bureaucratic components in Great Britain, Germany, France and Italy and to set up a more flexible operative structure able to meet clients’ expectations'.
As regards Italy, the management of Ibm Italia declared that the company is in a difficult situation and is 'suffering' from the crisis that has hit the sector and from the general economic conditions of the country. In 2005 the multinational company envisages to break even, with a 7% decrease in the turnover compared to 2003.
The reorganisation plan presented by Ibm on 4 May 2005 provides 800-1,000 redundancies in the Italian plants, mainly in the service and consultancy sectors, a reorganisation of the 14 branch network and the closure, before the end of 2005 of Ibm centres of Ancona and Verona, of the business centres of Bolzano and Udine and of the office of Milano. The plan provides also for transfers of personnel from Ancona to Bologna, from Verona to Padova and from Milan to Segrate and Vimercate as well as the downsizing and the de-grading of Ibm activites in our country. Ibm Italia will no longer manage the activities in Portogallo, Spain, Grece, Turkey and Israel in favour of the Spanish branch.
The multinational company will try to manage redundancies by encouraging early-retirements and dismissals through economic incentives.
The operation will permit EUR 2 million savings on the costs of the structures.
The trade unions had a very harsh reaction and considered the plan ineffective, non convincing and above all non-transparent. The trade unions voiced many criticism against the uncorrected behaviour of the multinational company and against the lack of industrial relations transparency in announcing and launching the plan. The trade unions lament the lack of precise information about the consequences of the restructuring plan in Italy as well as the precise number of redundancies. The trade union criticise the strategy of the multinational which seems totally focused more on cutting costs rather than on the possible development of Ibm in SMEs..
The trade union organisations representing metalworkers, respectively Federation of metalworkers (Federazione impiegati operai metallurgici, Fiom), the Italian federation of metalworkers’ (Federazione italiana metalmeccanici, Fim) and the Italian union of metalworkers (Unione italiana lavoratori metalmeccanici, Uilm) called on 23 May 2005 a very successful four-hour, in all Ibm plants and offices, strike to protest against the company decisions.
The strike is very significant because it was organised within the framework of a European action day. Demonstrations and strikes took place, at the same time, in Ibm French and Italian plants and offices.
According to Fausto Durante, secretary national of Fiom-Cgil the drastic reduction in personnel and the closure of entire plants and offices 'will drastically reduce Ibm marker in our country. It would be more advisable an action aimed at guiding and encouraging the information technology market starting from the specific features of our industrial sector characterised by SMEs which constitute an interesting potential market for Ibm'.
The national secretariats of Fiom, Fim e Uilm have announced other actions to protest against Ibm restructuring plan and to call the attention on the platform for the renewal of the company supplementary agreement presented by the trade unions to the company, at the end of 2004, and which is still waiting for an answer.
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Eurofound recommends citing this publication in the following way.
Eurofound (2005), Restructuring plan announced at Ibm, article.
