We're talking about a decline in production volume. The changes in the global automotive industry and recent geopolitical events have had an effect on us. Pasi Rannus, the director of manufacturing at Valmet Automotive, said on Monday that production will continue, but it will be scaled to match market demand.
There will be changes to job descriptions.
The negotiations with staff representatives began in January. Between late April and early May there will be redundancies, leaving around 1,400 employees at the plant in Uusikaupunki.
The plant is expected to need additional 150 employees in the autumn as it begins producing the AMG GT roadster for Mercedes-Benz. Rannus declined to speculate on when and how long the laid off employees could be brought back, as well as the duration of the temporary lay-offs.
He said that the employer has a certain take-back obligation, but it is too early to speculate. We can't provide any timelines at this point. Rannus said that he is confident that the electrification of road transport will give a boost to the company in the coming years. He stated that the demand for our services will only grow in the future.
After the sad news, Jarkko Heinonen, the director of business and economic development at the City of Uusikaupunki, expressed his confidence in the future of the assembly plant. We'll try to make sure that those laid off find new jobs. He said that there was still demand for labour in the region.
He reminded the assembly plant's labour situation that it has always fluctuated.