Romanian Court Deems ArcelorMittal Strike Illegal

Union leaders said they would appeal the ruling and are negotiating with the plant’s management.

Employees resumed work Wednesday morning after the decision of the Court of Appeal, as the management had expressed concern that the halting of works could have led to an explosion in the plant’s coal carbonization unit.

A few thousand employees went on general strike Monday morning, protesting against the salary raise proposed by the company’s management.

ArcelorMittal’s operating officer Hans Rosenstock said Tuesday that 1,600 were on strike, while the union said some 4,000 employees were protesting.

Unionists demanded a doubling of wages and said they would not settle for a raise lower than a gross 280 lei (EUR1=RON3.6144), while the management’s latest offer was a raise of 9.5%, but no less than RON100.