Romanian ArcelorMittal Galati Extends Voluntary Layoffs Deadline By 1-Mo

Trade union representatives said approximately 2,600 employees with ArcelorMittal Galati filed requests to leave through the voluntary layoffs program from January 1 to March 31 deadline, on severance pays packages, and 1,500 of them were already given green light to leave the plant.

The plant’s spokesperson Dorian Dumitrescu refused to ground the reason of extending the deadline for voluntary layoffs requests, but reiterated that all the employees will be sent to technical unemployment in the second quarter. ArcelorMittal Galati said recently it will send all its employees on technical unemployment by rotation, including the Board of Directors members, for a ten-10 period each, on the backdrop of lower demand for steel products.

ArcelorMittal Galati currently employs approximately 11,500 people, half compared with the fall of 2001, when the plant was privatized. Due to a privatization clause banning layoffs for five years, the company offered financial compensation to employees willing to leave in several stages.

ArcelorMittal (MT), the world's largest steelmaker, owns four steel plants in Romania, in Galati, Iasi, Hunedoara and Roman, harbor operator Romportmet Galati and the local unit of construction company ArcelorMittal Construction.

In a similar voluntary layoffs program at ArcelorMittal Hunedoara, more than 520 of the total 1,200 employees volunteered to leave the company, between December 16 and March 31. The list was closed at 1100 GMT Tuesday, according to ArcelorMittal Hunedoara's management, and the requests will now be processed by the company.

Also, ArcelorMittal Tubular Products Iasi laid off 114 of its 650 employees in February and March, at the employees' request, the plant's trade union leader said Tuesday.