Background information

The company level agreement was signed on 13 March 2020 by the company Ferrero S.p.A and the main trade unions in the food sector FAI-CISL, FLAI-CGIL, and UILA-UIL. According to the Decree 11 March 2020, but anticipating the measures introduced at the national level, the company agreements established a new protocol to guarantee the health and safety of the workers in the plant during the COVID-19 emergency. The company in fact decided to continue the production by halving the number of workers in the plant.

Content of measure

The agreement provides a detailed framework concerning the health and safety regulation in the plant and the new work organisation to implement during the emergency. Regarding the former, it established the following provisions:

• General hygienic rules to follow, in particular for the sanitation of the hands
• Provision of individual protective equipment (gloves, masks), emergency kits and hand sanitizer at disposal in the plant
• Re-organisation of the spaces to avoid the assemblage of people (canteens, entry/exit, changing rooms, break rooms, buses for the transportation of the workers to the establishment).

Concerning the work organisation, it set:

• The extension of the smart working to all the workers involved in tasks not directly linked to the retail and productive activities
• The gradual reduction of the production activities in order to halve the number of workers simultaneously working in presence in the establishment. The company ensured the turnover among the whole workforce
• The temporary halt of specific production processes. Specific provisions to safeguard the income levels of the workers engaged in these activities will be negotiated with the union representatives in the plant.

Use of measure

The Ferrero S.p.A is an international group. The provisions contained in the agreement apply only to the Ferrero plant located in Alba, Italy. The establishment employs about 4,500 workers, including full-time, part-time and temporary workers. The measures affect the workforce according to the activities performed in the plant, whether productive or administrative.

Contents

• Health and safety
• Work organisation

Target groups

Workers	Businesses	Citizens
Applies to all workers	Applies to all businesses	Does not apply to citizens

Actors and funding

Actors	Funding
Trade unions Company / Companies	No special funding required

Social partners

Social partners' role in designing the measure and form of involvement:

	Trade unions	Employers' organisations
Role	Negotiated	No involvement
Form	Not applicable	Not applicable

Social partners' role in the implementation, monitoring and assessment phase:

• Only trade unions
• Main level of involvement: Regional or local level

Involvement

The three main trade unions organising in the food sector (FAI-CISL, FLAI-CGIL, and UILA-UIL) have directly participated in the negotiation for the definition of the company-level agreement. Only the union organisations which have signed the sectoral national collective agreement applied in the plant are allowed to negotiate company-level agreements.

Views and reactions

The trade unions are satisfied with the provisions included in the agreement: the continuation of the production by halving the workers in the plant enabled to safeguard the jobs and the income levels of the workforce and, at the same time, to ensure a safe work environment during the COVID-19 emergency phase.

Sectors and occupations

This case is not occupation-specific.

Sources

• 13 March 2020: FLAI CGIL website (www.flai.it)