The strike day called this Tuesday at Grupo Lladró to demand respect for the collective agreement and the presentation of a viability plan that safeguards jobs has had "broad follow-up" and has left production "practically paralyzed," according to UGT FICA PV.
The stoppage is part of the "growing discontent of the workforce, which has been making significant efforts for years to contribute to the continuity of the activity, accepting sacrifices and demonstrating a firm commitment to the company, without the management having responded with a clear strategy that provides stability and confidence," the union stated in a note.
The president of the works council, Laura Sánchez, indicated that the management has conveyed its intention to disengage from the collective agreement, alleging that it does not have sufficient liquidity to pay salary arrears.
"The company tells us that it does not have liquidity to assume these payments, but the workers demand that the cuts be sought in other items and not, once again, in the workforce," she stressed.
In the same vein, the member of the works council of Arte y Porcelana, Andrés Martínez, warned that the company's proposal implies that "the workers will once again bear the consequences of the company's situation."
Martínez recalled that "the workforce has been enduring ERTEs, EREs, and salary freezes for ten years." "A portion of the workers has already had their salaries frozen for a decade due to the application of the HAY job evaluation system, and now the company intends to extend that freeze to production personnel as well," he lamented.
UGT FICA PV has called on management to "immediately" apply the salary increases agreed upon in the collective agreement and to send "a message of reassurance to the workforce by presenting a serious, transparent, and credible viability plan that guarantees the continuity of industrial activity."
"It has been demonstrated that freezing salaries or attempting to disengage from the collective agreement does not solve the company's problems. The solution lies in responsible management, an industrial strategy with a vision for the future, and respect for the rights of those who have sustained Lladró throughout all these years," the organization insisted.
The union has warned that "the mobilizations will continue as long as the company maintains its intention to breach the collective agreement and does not present a future project that guarantees the viability of the activity and the maintenance of employment".
In this context, the staff representation has already set a second day of strike for next Thursday, July 23, with the aim of maintaining pressure on management and forcing negotiations to unblock the conflict.