Spanish union welcomes strike-ending deal at Nissan vehicles plant

Spain’s UGT Union said Aug. 6 it welcomed an agreement reached between automaker Nissan and striking workers at its Barcelona-based plant that confirms activity at the site until December 2021.

The two sides reached an agreement Aug.5 after a consultation period concluded June 30, that will avoid the immediate closure of the plant, UGT said.

The agreement will end a three-month strike by the workers, who will resume production at the end of August at the three sites concerned.

The Barcelona site has a capacity for 200,000 vehicles per year, but produced only about a quarter of that total in 2019.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, vehicle production fell to near zero across Spain, prompting Nissan to announce May 28 its intention to close its plant as part of a global restructuring plan.

The two sides will continue to seek a long-term solution, which could include a “re-industrialization” of the site, the union said.

— Gianluca Baratti